Is digital connectedness good or bad for people, according to rhetorical analysis?
Is digital networking beneficial or detrimental to people?
Background for the topic
Staying connected on social media sites and the internet was once considered a privilege by the majority of the world's population, but this is changing, especially in developing countries, where people now consider connectivity to be a necessity. People may easily share their thoughts, where they are, and what they are doing at any given time. Personal posts and information that a person is willing to share on their internet cycles can be viewed by people all over the world. People from all walks of life irrespective of their ages, gender, race and educational background are increasingly spending more time on the internet. Therefore, it is a matter of concern as to whether the increasing digital trend has positive impact on people or it is hurting them.
Introduction of the works
In the article, Emerson Csorba offers an explanation as to how the excessive application and consumption of technology has become a nuisance in the everyday life of human beings. He makes use of his personal experience that occurred during a business meeting where he came to the realization that whenever there was silence in the conference room everyone reverted to their phones with focus on their social media accounts. Some were engaged on updating their status on social media forgetting that the meeting was still in progress. He noted that some people went to the extent of making calls in between the meeting on grounds that the calls were very urgent and important. He alludes to the fact that the level of concentration to the agenda of the meeting was very low due to the distractions from the internet accessed through the phones. It is very evident according to Csorba that many people prefer to stay connected to the internet as opposed to linking up with people who are near them. He is disgusted with the level of addictions and obsession with the internet. He is therefore of a firm belief that the aspect of social media enables people to get away from connecting with real-life situations and encouraging ideal views of connectivity.
On the other hand, Noa Gafini Slaney seems to have a different point of view from that of Emerson Csorba. She argues that social media platform in corporation with the society's participation can be a beneficial tool to the world by offering lessons on current happenings in the world. She used the online platform to initiate a campaign known as The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that was able raise huge amount of money besides the awareness that it generated. The idea according to Slaney was able to motivate many youths all over the world to be more informed of the condition besides learning more about the effects of the disease on the human body. Without the help of the social media, the campaign may not have gained any ground hence no positive results could have been attained. She argues that social media allows its users to liberate themselves in that they are free to share anything that they feel like sharing. The platform allows individuals to be more informed about others before having a physical encounter with them. The people who have social anxiety may benefit from the use of social media by gaining the techniques for communication hence they become better placed to connect with other people in real life situations. Social media therefore bears more positive than negatives as opposed to being viewed as the likely downfall of the younger generation.
My position
Both Noa and Csorba have presented their cases in different views and have showed strong support for their opinions. However, in my view, I believe that the case presented by Noa Gafni is stronger due to the fact that she presents very practical cases and recent activities such as the ALS bucket challenge on demonstrating the positive impacts of connectivity. She has further linked real life situations with her lines of argument. Csorba has failed to support his line argument with facts and real life examples but has instead chosen to downplay the key points presented by Noa.
Point 1: Ethos
Work A's purpose vs. Work B's purpose
A (Noa Gafni) : Support digital connectedness
B (Emerson Csorba) : Digital connectedness is bad.
Author A's credentials vs. Author B's credentials
Emerson Csorba is the Director of Gen Y Inc. which is a fast-growing consultancy organization whose main focus is based on the multigenerational involvement in the workplace. Gen Y Inc. which has been put on the spotlight by the CBC and the Globe and Mail as a major player in the consultancy industry, is currently assisting many organizations in Canada. The organization has partnered with the NXT City Prize in the city of Toronto and has spoken a number of times with the Conference Board of Canada and the Canada-China Business Council with focus on expanding to other cities such as London and Beijing. He is a major contributor to the Globe and Mail Leadership Lab and the Education lab, Huff Post and University Affairs, Maclean's on Campus and has been able to deliver a number of projects that include The Wanderer Online's Top 100 Edmonton Women in Business and UAlberta top 100 Most Influential Undergraduates. Together with Jaxson Khan, Emerson co-founded the Globe and Mail National Student Advisory Council that has been able to gather 150 of the most talented Gen Y in Canada. He has earned international recognition where he has been able to speak to major events such as the International Young Leaders Assembly in the United Nations in which he was a keynote speaker. He is a University of Cambridge Trust Scholar and a member of the executive team of Cambridge University Entrepreneurs.
Noa Gafni Slaney is the founder as well as the CEO of Impact Squared which is an organization that works in coordination with social causes so as to raise their message and encourage people across the globe to act and evaluate their roles. She began her career as an entrepreneur who founded a social network for women in 2005. She later became part of the founders of the digital team at the Hearst Magazines as the Head of Social Media. Her organization works with other major organizations and groups that include the United Nations Foundation, International Crisis Group and the Coalition for Inclusive Capitalism. When undergoing her MBA studies at the London Business School, she gained a lot of interest in the world of international organizations as well as social change. After completing her MBA, she became part of the World Economic Forum as a Global leadership fellow as well as the head of communications for the Global Shapers Community before launching Impact Squared. She is one of the regular contributors to the Harvard Business Review, Huffington Post and the Triple Pundit. Noa is a professor of practice at the New York University and a social Innovation fellow at the University of Cambridge.
Author A's tone and engagement with audience vs. Author B's tone and engagement with audience
Author A feels like suggesting and making her arguments while B put more effort on diminishing A's idea. B does build his idea too but he seems to exert more effort on diminishing A's idea. Author A has perfect the idea of appealing to the readers by using clear examples that they can relate with thus making an emotional connection with the readers. Author B applies general beliefs and assertions to develop his case against the use of social media besides trying to diminish the points presented by author A.
Point 2: Logos
Work A's data/evidence vs. Work B's data/evidence
A-Noa
She uses a number of data and outcomes to present her case. For example in her point, ''online activism have a positive effect in the real world.'. -the campaign attracted worldwide attention with leaders such as Lei Jun, Victor Koo, Mark Zuckerberg, and Bill Gates. The campaign criticized raising awareness (2.2 million Twitter mentions and 2.4 million Facebook videos). It raised more than $115 million. Recently, the Ice Bucket Challenge was credited with funding a research breakthrough. Lean In, founded by Sheryl Sandberg, uses high profile campaigns featuring Beyoncé and other celebrities tweeting their support for gender equality. These tweets sparked a conversation on and offline about the collective responsibility to close the gender gap and as a result, more than 900 companies have officially partnered with Lean In to support female leadership.
B-Csorba
According to the recent research by the University of Michigan, increased Facebook usage contributes to anxiety and even depression. By constantly seeing what others are doing, and in paying attention to their lives as they seem to be unfolding in real-time, our anxiety and uncertainty as to whether we are leading lives that fulfill our own potential deepens.
Work A's reasoning vs. Work B's
A- Makes use of celebrities such as Beyoncé and global phenomenon and B-uses research to make their arguments. The use of celebrities presents a much stronger case since they are people who have a lot of influence in the society and their actions affect many people especially the younger generation who view them as role models and pace-setters.
Point 3: Pathos
Work A's use of pathos vs. Work B's use of pathos
A-. Marginalized groups, such as gay teenagers, have been connecting with similar individuals and finding helpful resources. And movements like #BlackLivesMatter have turned anger toward injustice to positive, peaceful campaigns for change.
B- Though an important meeting between Canada and the United States, the Trudeau Instagram feed was at times more suggestive of a Vanity Fair shoot than a serious gathering between national leaders. -Canadian prime minister not taking things seriously.
The creation of emotional appeal by author A to the marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ communities and other minority groups in the United States draws a lot of sympathy from several people and groups.
Precursor to final conclusion
From the comparison, it can be revealed that both authors have strong lines of argument despite their sharp differences in opinions and views. My position is that global connectedness through the internet is beneficial to the society. Noa has clearly justified my position through the use of real life experiences and illustrations.
Conclusion
I firmly believe that global connectedness has become part of our life. It can be compared to cars. After cars were invented, no one would like to ride a horse instead of a car. Noa’s point is that digital connectedness is safe and there are many benefits that can be generated from it. On the other side, Csorba argues that it has many problems so it is bad for people. But since Noa offers suggestions with stronger logos, ethos, and pathos than Csorba, I believe Noa’s arguments are stronger than Csorba.
Work Cited
“Is Digital Connectedness Good or Bad People? – Worldnews.com.” N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2017.
“Room for Debate: Is Digital Connectedness Good or Bad for …” N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2017.
http://peacetalks.net/pt-videos/noa-gafni-slaney/
http://www.csap.cam.ac.uk/network/emerson-csorba/
Is Digital Connectedness Good or Bad for People? – Room …” N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2017.
