Experiences of discomfort with Twitter and other new media have in common that they show a desire for proximity. We want authentic contact in a world that is tangible and that we can reduce to human proportions. At the same time, we see that this world cannot come to us in any other way than 'mediated'. This is no different with old media than with new ones.
There is little point in qualifying media as positive or negative in itself. However, desirable and less desirable practices can arise in their use. Reflecting on this can give direction to your own media behaviour. Take the excesses of Twitter, for example. Twittering can turn into parroting if more and more senders offer the same information. An increase in the number of sources then only leads to uniformity. We can also waste our time tweeting, just like in front of the television. And there will certainly be tweeters who lose contact with their 'real' identity behind their avatar.
On the other hand, the most vital ideas are created in the same excessive way via Twitter and Facebook. malaysia phone number list New communities can also emerge that unleash revolutions. And besides, there is nothing wrong with classic values such as conviviality and social contact, this time in a virtual context.
With such observations I do not want to relativize the discomfort about new media as the stubborn resistance of an analogue generation. It is more interesting to make experiences of discomfort productive. Because they underline once again that media have a great influence on the development of identity, community, ideas and diversity. Media are an extension of ourselves. They help to connect the world of direct and everyday experience to the world beyond the horizon.