Finding the Right Balance

New communication technologies have enabled many people from many parts of the country to all have a conversation together simultaneously. Technologies such as e-mail and instant messenger have, in a sense, shrunken the public sphere. The limitations of time and space have become meaningless as communication has few boundaries. The question we must ask ourselves is, do these new technologies contribute or hinder our ability to be politically engaged? I personally believe that technologies, such as the internet, both contribute and hinder out ability to be politically engaged. The internet allows us to connect and share ideas with others we normally wouldn’t communicate with, but at the same time we are isolated from others because we are not physically with them. The internet keeps us alone in a room with a computer instead of actively participating in face-to-face political engagement.

Many of my relatives live in different parts of the country. Besides seeing them for the occasional Thanksgiving or Christmas, I used to have relatively little contact with them. The introduction of e-mail has completely changed the way I communicate with them. I now have regular weekly conversations with many of them where we discuss weather, sports, and political issues. The internet has enabled me to become more connected with my family, but it still does not replace physically being with them. Given the alternative of not communicating with them at all, e-mail has made communicating with my family easier and more convenient. Speaking about my ability to be politically engaged, I know I am a quiet person who usually has a lot to say, but I’m not always willing to stand up and say it. When I am anonymous, the fear of being criticized or embarrassed disappears for me. Political deliberation, thus, becomes easier for me in an online world. I have the confidence to express my views and beliefs because I am just a name on a computer to everyone else in the chat room. In that regard, the internet has allowed me, personally, to be more civically and politically engaged. All things considered, technology has definitely improved how I communicate, but the internet can be a double-edged sword, as it has a serious drawback.

The major problem with online communication is that the internet can breed isolation. When we communicate online, we are usually alone in a room with a computer. When I think about the definition of participation, I envision people working and sharing ideas with others in face-to-face conversations. If I were to enter a chat room and discuss a political issue with others, I would remain an anonymous screen name to everyone in that room. The presentation of my ideas would also suffer because tone, emotion, and passion are much more difficult to express in text than in face-to-face conversation. That is a serious difficulty with online communication. While technology has opened our world to new possibilities and ways of communicating, it has closed another world where people would meet together and deliberate face-to-face.

New technologies have provided us with new ways of communicating and becoming politically engaged. The trick, however, is to balance online communication with face-to-face communication. We cannot allow ourselves to just be an anonymous screen name. It is still important that we hold physical conversations with others. While the new technologies have made life easier for me, I too must also realize that visiting my friends and family who live far away is just as important as the new ways I am communicating with the