Technology’s Detrimental Effects on Communication Essay -- Communicati

Recent advancements in technology, especially social networking, have severely hindered the communication skills of today’s society by promoting edited, impersonal and staged communication. Today’s society places a high value on websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter; so much so, that it is startling when someone does not own a profile on a social network. The dependency on technological communication continues to reduce the ability of today’s generation to read body language, facial expressions, and to clearly vocalize what is important to them. Technology has changed drastically in the past 50 years, and continues to grow and morph every day. Today’s youth and adolescents are seen with their heads down, texting on their cell phones, instead of looking up and conversing with the people around them. While individually, each of the components of a social networking website may seem useful and necessary, the sum of them is drastically diminishing the ability of society to function and communicate in the absence of this technology. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter allow users to update their profiles at any moment, 24 hours a day 7 days a week, and now even from the very phone they use to text. These updates are all-encompassing and can range from life changing: â€Å"I Just found out I'm pregnant!† To the mindless minutiae of ‘I just ate a sandwich.† Social Networking sites have become to go-to-website for anything you’d want to do online. Through these sites, you can contact your frien ds and family, play games, take quizzes, get help with homework, and even cruise the dating scene through ‘applications’ on some websites. Since social networking sites can replace event invitations, purchased video games, conversatio... ...eir friends and family, and to hold conversation in general. Speaking and communication skills are all affected by the constant use and abuse of networking sites, and of technology in general. English and Sexton say it in the simplest words conceivable â€Å"Every hour that is spent on a social networking web site is another hour spent alone† (1) Works Cited Baca, Jimmy Santiago. â€Å"Becoming a Poet.† Reading Our World: Conversations in Context. Ed. Robert P Yagelski. 2nd ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. 387-393. Print English, Marlanda, and Sexton, Jennifer. "Counterpoint: Social Networking Websites Isolate People and put them at Risk of Predation.† EBSCOhost. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. Online. Tannen, Deborah. â€Å"Sex, Lies, and Conversation.† Reading Our World: Conversations in Context. Ed. Robert P Yagelski. 2nd ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. 330-335. Print Technology’s Detrimental Effects on Communication Essay -- Communicati Recent advancements in technology, especially social networking, have severely hindered the communication skills of today’s society by promoting edited, impersonal and staged communication. Today’s society places a high value on websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter; so much so, that it is startling when someone does not own a profile on a social network. The dependency on technological communication continues to reduce the ability of today’s generation to read body language, facial expressions, and to clearly vocalize what is important to them. Technology has changed drastically in the past 50 years, and continues to grow and morph every day. Today’s youth and adolescents are seen with their heads down, texting on their cell phones, instead of looking up and conversing with the people around them. While individually, each of the components of a social networking website may seem useful and necessary, the sum of them is drastically diminishing the ability of society to function and communicate in the absence of this technology. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter allow users to update their profiles at any moment, 24 hours a day 7 days a week, and now even from the very phone they use to text. These updates are all-encompassing and can range from life changing: â€Å"I Just found out I'm pregnant!† To the mindless minutiae of ‘I just ate a sandwich.† Social Networking sites have become to go-to-website for anything you’d want to do online. Through these sites, you can contact your frien ds and family, play games, take quizzes, get help with homework, and even cruise the dating scene through ‘applications’ on some websites. Since social networking sites can replace event invitations, purchased video games, conversatio... ...eir friends and family, and to hold conversation in general. Speaking and communication skills are all affected by the constant use and abuse of networking sites, and of technology in general. English and Sexton say it in the simplest words conceivable â€Å"Every hour that is spent on a social networking web site is another hour spent alone† (1) Works Cited Baca, Jimmy Santiago. â€Å"Becoming a Poet.† Reading Our World: Conversations in Context. Ed. Robert P Yagelski. 2nd ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. 387-393. Print English, Marlanda, and Sexton, Jennifer. "Counterpoint: Social Networking Websites Isolate People and put them at Risk of Predation.† EBSCOhost. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. Online. Tannen, Deborah. â€Å"Sex, Lies, and Conversation.† Reading Our World: Conversations in Context. Ed. Robert P Yagelski. 2nd ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. 330-335. Print