The Web Is Not Turning Our Brains to Mush

The popular notion of the Internet's alleged downside actually sounds quite rational. It goes something like this: Since we tend to graze the Web for information without taking the time to read stories in full, and since our 21st century communication style is defined by super-short (think Twitter) statements and shorthand, we're losing the ability to have meaningful communication with others. As a result, we've become dull and unable to think to our fullest potential.

What a load of bull, according to English and linguistics professor Dennis Baron, who was interviewed by Salon.com about his new book "A Better Pencil." Bucking conventional wisdom, Baron's book begins with a walk down memory lane, discussing how every innovation that involves writing -- from the pencil to the typewriter -- has ushered in warnings of the demise of language.

The Internet is certainly no different and is probably much more benign -- perhaps even beneficial to the evolution of language -- than feared by Luddites, he argues (link is a PDF). As explained in the Salon interview, published as a transcribed Q&A, Baron's mission was to place the Internet phenomenon's effect on communication, warts and all, into a historical context.

He discovered some familiar patterns:

"There were complaints about typewriters making writing too mechanical, too distant -- it disconnects the author from the words. That a pen and pencil connects you more directly with the page. And then with the computer, you have the whole range of 'this is going to revolutionize everything' versus 'this is going to destroy everything.'"

When asked about the Facebook phenomenon and its impact on personal relationships, however, Baron took both sides. While he gives some credence to the notion that calling Facebook connections "friends" may erode the meaning of the word, he points out that social networks also create a rich, new layer for existing friendships and help close the gap in long-distance relationships.

He stops short of saying that the popularity of platforms such as e-mail and blogging has made people better or worse writers. What's important, he says, is the access to readers.

"Writers spend their whole lives looking for readers and now with the computer, readers are there. They're just waiting for people to put stuff online. Does this dilute the quality? That's a matter of opinion."

I think anything that gives people the means to production, to borrow liberally from Karl Marx, is a step in the right direction. The only thing that concerns me, though, is the prospect of even more competition for work in the brutally competitive world of freelance journalism. Sigh.

Photo courtesy of USAID Bangladesh, via Wikimedia Commons