Ham radio and CB radio were both early forms of "social networking" technology. In both cases the idea that "we" could talk to "each other," without mediation by the powers-that-be, was inclusive and exciting. But despite a vibrant subculture for each, neither caught on in the larger population to the extent that Facebook and Twitter have.
I think Ham and CB were held back by their reliance on speaking rather than writing: you talk, and are listened to, now, in the present. And while immediacy brings more reality to a connection, it also carries with it a lot of pressure. What if you don't have something to say right this minute? What if you don't feel clever, or if you speak slowly, or struggle with getting your thoughts in order? Too bad, time's up! So the reaction is to avoid it until you do have something to say. But, since topics in the medium are often provoked by participation in the medium, non-participation cuts you off from the flow of the space. And then avoidance becomes the default and the radio is parked, unused, on top of the fridge or down in the basement.
Current forms of social networking are asynchronous and written, and I think this is key to their success. Facebook, Twitter, texting and other SN technologies are all typing. They are posted when you are satisfied with your phrasing, and they are read by others at their leisure, some time later. Performance anxiety is lessened enough by this so that people find all sorts of things to say, and even clever ways to say them. And the more they participate, the more they have to talk about, as the conversations gain momentum. The asynchronous buffer is so powerful that people even shrink it to so-called "real-time," typed chats. But significantly these are still typed, and they are still asynchronous, even if fast; they're not really real-time in the sense that spoken conversation is. You may have an exchange with others where the responses are separated by only a few seconds; you may go right up to the real event horizon, but you don't cross the written boundary.
Until you decide to stop social networking for the moment and attempt to be actually social. But that's a different technology entirely.
Comments