For as much as technology has changed society, it has not perfected it. There are plenty of limitations, both technological and cultural, that communicators need to work around and adapt to if they hope to successfully navigate digital spaces.
Better Connections Means Better Quality
Despite the fact that communication technologies make it quicker and easier to form connections and relationships with others, it can often also diminish the quality of the connection being formed. As this blog has previously mentioned, social media use can easily facilitate feelings of information overload and unrealistic expectations surrounding oneself, and remote work tools result in coworkers feeling less connected to one another. If not navigated properly, communication technology is accompanied by serious mental health risks.
There are ways to help reduce these feelings and improve how communication technology is used, however. For example, when building an online following, it is important to focus on identity rather than trend hopping, and to build up your own community without comparison to the success of others (Smith, 2023). While this may be in reference to those trying to establish a career online, the same logic can be extended to the average person. Focusing on building yourself up leads to a much more productive time online. Overcoming the negatives of online culture is accomplished by actively pushing back against it.
In addition to this, improved frequency of face-to-face interactions in the workplace helps to improve feelings of connectedness, with video call usage helping to compensate for what is lost in the technology-driven communicative environment (Skootsky et al., 2023). Using tools like Zoom or Google Hangouts can help to overcome this aspect of technological limitation. It is not impossible to feel connected through communication facilitated by technology, but it must be done correctly and with proper mental health-related considerations.
Ethical Considerations for Both Consumers and Communicators
With technology presenting such a wide range of information for consumption at such a quick rate, it is unsurprising that ethical concerns are at the forefront of technological limitations. This blog has previously noted how technology makes digital piracy incredibly easy to accomplish, and how social media encourages negativity toward others as it results in higher engagement. Technology makes unethical behaviors easy to accomplish and sometimes even encouraged.
This is why it is essential for communicators to do what they can to educate others and to learn about and adhere to ethical guidelines. Informing others about the risks inherent to piracy and the harm it brings to content creators can prove successful in combatting its occurrence (Grigorescu, 2023). Communicators need to actually communicate with others. The digital age has made this easier to accomplish, but just as much effort still needs to be put in to connecting with the audience.
It’s also important to focus on how engaging in honesty and transparency improves trust and reputation, and it ensures the public is well-informed and capable (Walton, 2024). Even if social media algorithms make short-term attention attractive, adhering to traditional ethical guidelines for communicators is ultimately more fulfilling in the long-term. Social media feeds into a cultural limitation here of seeking attention at any cost, but it can be easily overcome with proper considerations.
Navigating New Digital Tools
With technology developing, communicators have new tools available to them that can help to increase the quality of communication. Previously, this blog has touched on how data analytics tools create a barrier to understanding how to most effectively reach and audience, and how using artificial intelligence for communication work comes with risks relating to plagiarism and promoting prejudiced viewpoints. It is entirely possible for technology to be used in such a way that a communicator’s work is benefited, but it can also be limited if the tool isn’t understood.
This is why it is essential for communicators to regularly educate themselves on the newest tools and what they are capable of. There are plenty of programs that can teach people how to use data analytics tools and help decrease barriers to creating effective content. Artificial intelligence can also be used more effectively, that is decreasing inaccuracies and biases, through walkthrough experiences, testing, and training (Gutiérrez-Caneda et al., 2023). It is important to not over rely on these tools as doing so simply creates a new technological limitation, but understanding how they can work in tandem with traditional communication skills and efforts will enhance the work of others and expediate the content creation process without sacrificing quality.
Technology Is a Part of Communication, Now and Forever
Society has reached a point where technology and communication are entirely inseparable entities. From entertainment media to workplace environments to journalism to social networks, audiences cannot be fully reached and engaged with if technological tools and developments are not being taken advantage of. In order for this to be done in as effective of a manner as possible, time must be taken to understand what goes into overcoming the limitations that technology presents, both in terms of the tools available to do so and how to actually use them.
References
Grigorescu, I. (2023, May 11). Keep your digital products safe: 9 ways for keeping online piracy away. PayPro Global. https://blog.payproglobal.com/safety-tips-for-digital-piracy
Gutiérrez-Caneda, B., Vázquez-Herrero, J., & López-García, X. (2023). AI application in journalism: ChatGPT and the uses and risks of an emergent technology.El Profesional de La Información,32(5), 1–16.https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.3145/epi.2023.sep.14
Meyer, M. (2018, February 23). People sitting down near table with assorted laptop computers [Photograph]. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/people-sitting-down-near-table-with-assorted-laptop-computers-SYTO3xs06fU
Skootsky, T. J., Sanchez, D. R., & Kawasaki, K. (2023). Feeling connected: Technology-mediated communication and the relationship between modality and affective outcomes.Multimodal Technologies & Interaction,7(11), 105. https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.3390/mti7110105
Smith, R. L. (2023, March 6). Overcome unrealistic expectations for social media | Web Design Relief. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/overcome-unrealistic-expectations-social-media-web-design-smith/
Walton, M. (2024, January 3). The importance of ethics in PR: Why ethical conduct is critical to success. Agility PR Solutions. https://www.agilitypr.com/pr-news/public-relations/the-importance-of-ethics-in-pr-why-ethical-conduct-is-critical-to-success/
