Face-to-face communication and the Internet

For everyone worried about human communication in the Internet Age, go see "Up in the Air."

Every time I give a speech, an audience member says she or he "worries" that the web is destroying good old fashioned human face-to-face communication.

"Up in the Air" starts out trying to defend F2F from inferior and uncaring impersonal online communication. But then it gets sticky. Turns out human communication in the year of our Lord 2010 is actually up-in-the-air. What did you think about the movie?

Personal admission: I had no idea what "Up in the Air" was really about after seeing it. I thought it was a good movie about relationships and flying. My brilliant co-author Julie had to tell me what the movie was really about.

Comments

[trampolines]

is that george clooney?

[Terry Newman]

Whether in person or on a computer screen, there are just some things that don't go well, like getting laid off or fired. I wonder what the difference would have been if they were giving good news?

[Gemi Powell]

I saw the movie and it makes me think about communication and and relationships and what they are becoming. Nothing is ever what it seems. Leaving out life’s unflattering details is easy and probably those details are irrelevant in many cases. You do not see the real life of the person on the other end. Partial truths are very easy and it isn’t until you get an opportunity to step into that person's life that you get the full picture of who or what they are. But really does it matter if you never know the full truth when many times the relationship never moves past the cyber interactions. Really do I care what color the person is, what they weigh, if they are married and have children or if they are living out of their car? What I care about is the job getting done, is the need being met, are they fulfilling their end of the agreement? Is the rest important?

The thing about the movie was that when he finally decided to go past the uncommitted connection and abandon his lifelong theory and value of traveling light and emptying your backpack of unnecessary weight nothing was as it seemed and he then had to reconsider his life, he had decided against his former convictions and found his new ones empty.

[Erik Holden, NFPA Professional Development]

I didn't see the movie, but the discussion about modes of communication reminds me of a company I worked for 20 years ago. The corporate office chose to fire all the administrative people at the branch locations via a video tape. Technology may change, but you'll always have people that just don't get it.

[Richard Widdicombe]

When new technologies appear, there are often attempted applications, that just don't work out. And, there are also often unintended consequences.
The early idea that the telephone was just for business use evaporated as lonely housewives started talking. The advance of the automobile certainly changed the location of sexual hook-ups for youngsters of their day. When PCs were first widely used in universities, they did not advance teaching so much as increase student typing skills. When the internet connected these same PC's we saw the emergence of email communication as the dominant use. Today with GOOGLE some of the early desires for universal teaching and learning are emerging.

[ipad]

In spite of these downsides, the Touch is a great media player, and the iPad remains the best end-to-end portable solution for playing and purchasing music and video.

[oral dental care]

I don't think internet can destroy that face to face communication.- actually, the web gives you the opportunity of being in contact with everyone, so that can lead you to see your people, in a matter of a click, like a cellphone, really easy to make a meeting!!!!!

[truck rental]

I think to face communication is one the big advantage of Internet. In fact, Now a days, People are getting married with help Internet.You can see your dear one using Internet..