Monthly Archives: April 2012

I agree with Shirley when it comes to the addiction before the internet was TV.  This is because when ever you turn on a channel there is something new you never experienced  and turn to a different channel there is another side of life you didn’t experience and therefore got to.For example all the reality shows that came up in the 1990s right before internet became popular kept everyone glued to the TV because it was a way for people to see and experience how other people completely different from them lived.  Everyone was glued to the TV simply because it was “immediate satisfaction” and therefore got everything non stop because TV channels are on 24/7.

After the internet came around with all the instant communication abilities with other people no matter how far they are made the TV take a back seat as the instant gratification and constant entertainment medium.  Shirley talks about 2 different reasons how people have started using the internet: communal and civic reasons.  The communal reason people use the internet is not necessarily the most productive but it is positive because when shared with people it could have many applications for each different individual and the civic reason which we are all witnessing currently like the regime changes in Egypt was hugely in part because of people taking to technology to spread the word of rebellion which  ultimately spawned change in Egypt and also in other parts of the world.  There are a lot of people on the internet who post products on blogs which the general public gets to view through another person’s experience as opposed to just watching a commercial on TV which shows a very one sided point of view.  There are also people’s life experiences, news and all sorts of information that is available online which is much more attractive which lets the general public well informed.  Twitter and Facebook keeps the young generation up to date on news which they would not watch by watching TV and reading news papers.