Wyatt Graham

Faith | Books | Culture

Social Media

Technology Isn’t the Bad Guy

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I am more and more convinced that the weight we put on the structural implications of technology and its deleterious effects on us misses the mark. The loss of civic virtues and institutions that had taught forms of self-control, gave community, and more have played a huge role.

This role is often unstated in technology studies. But one reason why people attempt to find community online is because they cannot find it in real life. Everyone is isolated, lonely, living in cities that tend to further this isolation, prevent large families from existing, etc.

Without the traditional mediating institutions of clubs, churches, fraternities, schools, and other such places, people gravitate towards what’s left: social media and community online. [Read more…] about Technology Isn’t the Bad Guy

Three Benefits of Social Media

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One beneficial part of social media is that you can ask for prayer and almost instantly the body of Christ across the globe can pray for you.

Another good thing about social media is that you can find someone on here who might be an expert or knowledgeable about something you want to know—and you can ask them a question!
 
A third cool thing about social media is that you can find someone whom you deem trustworthy to deliver news, science, or whatever and follow them or put them on a list. Then instead of letting information just flow to you, you can follow/track trustworthy sources. You control it.

Mesmerized by The Phone, Missed My Daughter

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Today, I took my daughter to swimming lessons. With five other parents, I observed the class. I should say: I observed. At one point during the class, I looked around and saw every parent—all five—mesmerized by their phones. No parent watched their child. All watched their phones. 

I am not uniquely virtuous. Last week, I was mesmerized by my phone. I missed my daughter when she dunked her head under water. She told me, don’t look at your phone! I mostly obeyed. I looked at my phone, but not for long. The compulsion to look took over, and I fell into a mania of technology. But I held on to my sanity. I stopped, and here is what I saw. 

I saw a young boy tell my daughter, You are doing great! I watched my daughter swim in the deep end with a life jacket. I walked near her and told her she did great. She looked at me with glee, a smile broken across her face, saying something like, That is my daddy! 

Whatever moment we had, we had because I was not memorized by the screen but by her. She knows I saw. I know I saw. We know that we love each other.  [Read more…] about Mesmerized by The Phone, Missed My Daughter

You Are under no Obligation to Interact with Someone on the Internet

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As in regular life, you are under no obligation to interact with someone on the internet. This is especially true if someone is abusive or unkind or rude. 

If someone (uninvited) walked up to you in a parking lot to yell or berate you, then you might walk away fast out of caution for safety’s sake. You can do the same online.  [Read more…] about You Are under no Obligation to Interact with Someone on the Internet

How Social Media Makes Regional Conflicts International

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I love social media in part because I follow and learn from pastors, professors, and experts. I love asking questions. I love finding answers. What I do not love is entering into conflicts online (well, my flesh might sometimes). 

And while that used to be simple to do through self-control, it has become increasingly hard to do over the past few years due to so many theological and cultural wars occurring across the globe. When these regional conflicts hit social media, they become international. And when they become international, they affect all of us. They make it near impossible to avoid conflicts. [Read more…] about How Social Media Makes Regional Conflicts International