Clive Thompson Social Media Summary

Social Media Analysis

The surge of social media has an immense influence on teenagers as generation changes and freedom is limited. In Clive Thompson’s opinion piece ‘Don’t blame social media if your child is unsocial’ published on Wired on the 26-12-2013, brings forward the issue teenagers losing their social skills. Thompson in a measured yet firm tone, he inverts the notion that parents are the ones that causes this ‘epidemic’ in an attempt to make parents and readers of Wired recognise and actually unlock teenagers who are constantly caged up in the world of being on social media.

Initially, Thompson opens his letter by immediately exposing that teenagers are spending excessive time on technologies, swaying the audience to believe that
teens are missing out on the beautiful mess of socialising ‘face-to-face’. To support his argument, Thompson points out that this is a ‘trend’ and a ‘crisis’ that is physically destroying teens, in an attempt to make parents realise the seriousness of this issue. Emphasising his point, he compares the media as ‘casino-like’ that possibly ‘hypnotised’ teenagers, forcing parents to recognise that they are under the spell of technology, which they should not be permitted to enter. Thus through his letter the author questions parents and pundits to think beyond teenagers being addicted to technology as they are the parents who are in control of their lives.

However, in his next argument, Thompson endeavours to arouse feelings of quilt in his readers when he reveals that it is parent’s fault and ‘they should blame themselves’ for their children being caught up in the world of technology thus force parents to recognise that technology may actually not be at fault but that rather it is their parenting styles that are contributing to the problem.
He argues that levels of freedom have changed compared to early 80s and now where teenagers could ‘roam pretty widely’ with friends. However Thompson mentioned that it is due to media releasing horrifying but rare child abduction stories, that ‘shortened the leash on their kids’ in an attempt make parents recognise that shortening their leash on teens have its negative impact that causes them to lose their social skills. With being protected in this parental nest, and can not hangout as much as they desire, Thompson argues that eventually, these restrictions are causing teenagers to ‘move it online,’ in an effort to make parents believe that it is not teenager’s fault for losing their social skill as freedom is limited in this
generation.

Thompson then moves on to incorporating an experts opinion by introducing a close friend, John Boyd who is a ‘Microsoft researcher’ in order to draw the attention of his audience as he points out that ‘teens aren’t addicted to social media’ in fact, ‘they’re addicted to each other’ in an attempt to sway parents to believe that this protection system that media introduced is causing children to use technology and socializing online instead, thus leads children losing the beauty of socializing face-to-face.
Thompson clarifies to the parents that ‘the problem is you; the solution is you’ thus challenges parents to conquer ‘irrational fear and give them more
freedom.’

Reinforcing his argument is an image of two birds locked in a metaphorical IPhone cages, inspiring readers get sucked in the meanings behind these symbols. The imagery of this text is aimed at parents, which helps the reader to acknowledge that, it is parents who locked their children against their will. The inclusion of the lock is designed to help parents recognise that teenagers are not at fault or even in conflict of their levels of face-to-face contact. Indeed Clive is positioning readers to recognise that it is also parents who hold the key to the solution. In the same way, the cage is hung up; therefore it is unstable with nothing to support them. This guides the reader to the conclusion that if this entrapment continues, when the strong winds blow, teenagers will not have valuable friends to cling onto. The insertion of an IPhone influences the readers to concede that it is possible deactivate it and unlock the caged up world of teenagers and learn to socialise again. Thus this inclusion of caged birds motivate parents to make the change, as they are the ones holding the ‘key’ to unlock the cages.