I assumed your comment was a joke — and not a bad one, actually — until noticing the replies taking it seriously.
The comic is not a poke at cell phones. It’s about all of America and the world being so distracted by their baubles and comforts that they’re unaware of what’s right in front of them.
Correct, its not about the phone its about “distractions” in general.
The phone is just today’s equivalent, of yesterday’s thing that keeps people entertained and distracted from the world around them. Whether that is a TV, Newspaper, Book, Play, or a cold beer.
are you saying ‘its all just different flavors of the same thing, just different ways to entertain yourself’?
isn’t who controls the content and the nature of that content extremely important too?
is spending 4 hours/day watching TV reruns of Golden Girls and…
spending 4 hours/day locked in a frenzy of algorithmically targeted highly personalized addictive right wing propaganda… the same thing?
The Romans had the coliseum to entertain the populous, all to distract from the problems their empire was facing.
So as you put it, its different flavours of the same thing.
Yes algorithmically targeted highly personalized addictive social media might no be the same as a TV rerun of Golden Girls, but both are still a form of entertainment and one could argue both are fighting for your attention/distracting you from the world.
the question is obviously not “Is this new technology BAD in and of itself?” the better question has always been, “Who controls this new technology and to what ends?”
if you can’t see the distinction, you’re not thinking critically about the last century of technological development and how it actually impacts people’s minds in lasting material ways. from the cotton gin to silent films to drones, technology is value neutral… until it’s used to reinforce specific agendas.
the people comparing it to comic books (as if comics are harmless little nothings) are naive as fuck. comic books made a huge social impact and fostered both bad and good stereotypes, and helped promote narratives which drastically shaped the course of 20th century youth culture. that’s a lot of power. and I’m supposed to believe phones have less potential impact on shaping people’s worldview? gtfo 'ere.
They have the right idea but they’re misinformed. It’s not the phone itself that’s the problem, it’s the algorithms in the apps pushing right-wing propaganda on its users that’s the problem.
It can be if not used in moderation, and most people do not use it in moderation, but that’s more of a fault of the platforms and addictive technology than it is to fully blame individuals
Phone bad
I assumed your comment was a joke — and not a bad one, actually — until noticing the replies taking it seriously.
The comic is not a poke at cell phones. It’s about all of America and the world being so distracted by their baubles and comforts that they’re unaware of what’s right in front of them.
Media literacy in the U.S. is legitimately so bad, ig it’s not surprising people came to the wrong conclusion.
Correct, its not about the phone its about “distractions” in general.
The phone is just today’s equivalent, of yesterday’s thing that keeps people entertained and distracted from the world around them. Whether that is a TV, Newspaper, Book, Play, or a cold beer.
are you saying ‘its all just different flavors of the same thing, just different ways to entertain yourself’?
isn’t who controls the content and the nature of that content extremely important too?
is spending 4 hours/day watching TV reruns of Golden Girls and… spending 4 hours/day locked in a frenzy of algorithmically targeted highly personalized addictive right wing propaganda… the same thing?
What comes on after golden girls? The 6 o’clock news, where if it bleeds it leads.
The Romans had the coliseum to entertain the populous, all to distract from the problems their empire was facing.
So as you put it, its different flavours of the same thing.
Yes algorithmically targeted highly personalized addictive social media might no be the same as a TV rerun of Golden Girls, but both are still a form of entertainment and one could argue both are fighting for your attention/distracting you from the world.
But don’t forget who owns those social media feeds and is aligning with trump.
Father i cannot click the book
I hate my wife
Did you win son?
the question is obviously not “Is this new technology BAD in and of itself?” the better question has always been, “Who controls this new technology and to what ends?”
if you can’t see the distinction, you’re not thinking critically about the last century of technological development and how it actually impacts people’s minds in lasting material ways. from the cotton gin to silent films to drones, technology is value neutral… until it’s used to reinforce specific agendas.
the people comparing it to comic books (as if comics are harmless little nothings) are naive as fuck. comic books made a huge social impact and fostered both bad and good stereotypes, and helped promote narratives which drastically shaped the course of 20th century youth culture. that’s a lot of power. and I’m supposed to believe phones have less potential impact on shaping people’s worldview? gtfo 'ere.
Meanwhile, it’s the technofascist billionaires bankrolling trump. The technofascists are brainwashing people.
They have the right idea but they’re misinformed. It’s not the phone itself that’s the problem, it’s the algorithms in the apps pushing right-wing propaganda on its users that’s the problem.
It can be if not used in moderation, and most people do not use it in moderation, but that’s more of a fault of the platforms and addictive technology than it is to fully blame individuals