Generation Do Something

After reading both William Deresiewicz‘s article “Generation Sell,” in addition to the response from a UPenn student in “Generation Do” and Technopoly by Neil Postman, I’ve become extremely frustrated with this on going debate about the purpose and goals and ideals of the Millenials. Even though I’m a Millenial myself, I’m going to have to take Deresiewicz’s side. Mostly because I didn’t understand any of the students claims. He lauded our peers with Job’s creative genius, Obama’s idealism. What does that all mean? What does it mean that we’re involved in social entrepreneurship? If we are entrepreneurs, what exactly are we doing rather than selling?

Even though on paper it says that my major is Communication, for me its also the major of the good and evil of digital media. Social media has created a global landscape, connecting people and products and ideas all over the world. But at the same time, social media has created an escape to distract us from real life and also replaces actions and real support with symbolic clicks and like gestures.The former sounds better than the latter but is it better? Has invasive technologies actually improved the lives of all the developing countries that we’ve forced Internet upon?  I feel like because my generation has agency, and this delusion of action from behind a very misleading screen (most but definitely not everyone) feels like we’re doing more than we actually are.

The Myth of the Digital Native

Although this seems to counter the basis of my blog, I think that these scholars are making very valid points. In “The Fallacy of Digital Natives” by Dan Pontefract and  “Generational Myth” by Siva Vaidhyanathan, they reduce the term and layout the facts of what being a digital native truly doesn’t mean.

Notable quotes:

Talk of a “digital generation” or people who are “born digital” willfully ignores the vast range of skills, knowledge, and experience of many segments of society. It ignores the needs and perspectives of those young people who are not socially or financially privileged. It presumes a level playing field and equal access to time, knowledge, skills, and technologies.. – Siva Vaidhyanathan

Sure, there may be a larger percentage of Millennials that tap into technology first compared to their elders, but oversimplifying the division of generations to suggest one prefers an all-technology learning style whilst the others use it when necessary is preposterous. – Dan Pontefract

Though I no longer believe in a digital native in the sense of  someone adept at computing or using and crafting the web, I think I still believe in a new group (I will avoid the word generation) that is glued to digitally manufactured social interactions and hardware devices they don’t understand. It’s not the same digital native, but I do believe they’re out there. If there are so many questions about whether the group exists, and what it even means, maybe that means the concept needs far more clarification than its been given so far.