In the late 1950s, iconic newsman Edward R. Murrow recognized a paradox developing as the advent of television was transforming news reporting from the purely word-driven medium of radio into a much more powerful visual medium available in homes across America.
Murrow understood that news journalism would never be the same. He also recognized the responsibility that accompanies that kind of power.
In 1958, during a Radio-Television News Directors Association and Foundation dinner where he was the keynote speaker, Murrow spoke of the new television medium and the potential effects it could have on journalism and our society as a whole.
Known as his now famous “Lights in a Box Speech,” Murrrow explained how the new medium had the potential to teach, educate and inspire — but that it would require us to ensure it would be used towards those ends.
“Otherwise,” he said, “it is merely wires and lights in a box.”
This past Sunday, like millions of others, I heard about the murder of 74-year-old Robert Godwin Sr., who was randomly gunned down during a live stream on Facebook by Steve Stephens.
I chose not to watch the footage, but millions of others did, sharing it and tagging people despite pleas from Godwin’s family members not to do so.
This horrific use of social media came less than a month after a live Facebook streaming of a 15-year-old girl being sexually assaulted by a gang of six individuals in Chicago.
More than 40 people watched the assault live.
No one reported it or called police.
It wasn’t until the following day, when the girl’s mother reported her missing, that authorities discovered the video and eventually the girl’s whereabouts.
In the months leading up to the Presidential election, and in the months that have followed, I’ve watched social media platforms such as Facebook and others succumbing to the worst — rather than the best — we have to offer as a society.
It’s human nature to be drawn to things that disturb us. It’s the reason we gawk at the scene of accidents; why there are more NCIS spin-offs than any other genre on TV; and why Greek mythology is full of cautionary tales that end in tragedy. We find a certain comfort in recognizing when the mistakes of others have lead to their misfortune — and how we can avoid making those same mistakes.
But things are different in this era of social media communalism. It’s no small irony that, while we have become increasingly engaged in sharing our thoughts and experiences with more people than ever before, we have simultaneously come to accept that we are sharing those very things with people we will likely never meet.
Through that acceptance we are slowly laying the groundwork for the kind of social disconnect that we have begun to see with live streaming of disturbing events — and, perhaps even more disturbing, having them shared hundreds of thousands of times by others.
In a way, social media is promoting a culture of digital-aged peeping Toms, encouraging us to gawk through an endless array of partially open windows into the lives of others — many of whom we don’t truly know.
We can leave comments and engage in the conversations of strangers without consequence or accountability.
It’s an era of communication unlike any other, and the ultimate repercussions on our culture remain to be seen.
In the same way that Murrow expressed the need for us to have a willingness to use the medium of television to teach, educate and inspire, we need to ask ourselves what direction we will take with the evolution of social media.
Will we succumb to the worst of our nature or the best of it?
Will our smartphones and other digital devices be utilized to improve the way we communicate and broaden our understanding of each other and the world?
Or will they prove to be little more than microchips and lights in an even smaller box?
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Ned Hickson is a syndicated columnist with News Media Corporation and editor-in-chief at Siuslaw News. Write to him at nedhickson@icloud.com
Ned's Blog 
Thanks Ned. Excellent commentary.
Social media is a gift to people who might otherwise live in isolation.
Your description of the horrific murder of Robert Godwin Sr. It is reminiscent of the Nick Berg video which remains one of the more sordid moments of the G. W. Bush era.
My hope is that decent people will unite to forge a new intentional social contract based on the principles of human rights, universal education, universal healthcare, the exploration of space, and improved standards of living for as many people in the World as possible.
Otherwise we’re little more than high tech barbarians.
Well said and so very true, my friend.
I share your hope, but I think most people will be too busy staring at their phones to forge any new social contracts.
Social media creates new ways to create a consensus which is why it’s so important for us to examine and verify the sources of the information we send and receive.
I can’t argue with that — I have the same fear. The Romans created the games to be a distraction to the common people. Smartphones are achieving the same thing today.
Reblogged this on Art by Rob Goldstein and commented:
from Ned’s Blog
Thanks for sharing, Robert 😉
You’re welcome, Ned. These are the kinds of discussions we need to have as we sort out what happened.
Very true and well said.
Thanks so much, Lynette
This was excellent Ned! I think we’re seeing the effects of people succumbing to the worst of their nature already, and it’s only going to get worse, including increasing rates of anxiety and depression, and narcissism. I believe technology will be the downside of our society, and the slope is getting damn slippery.
Technology is moving faster than our ability to process it. The result, as you mention, is that growing culture of anxiety, depression and narcissism that we need to change before it consumes us.
I’m not sure we can at this point, which is even more depressing.
Reblogged this on Shamanic Paths and commented:
Ned: saying all the things calmly, eloquently and efficiently, that I can only express in grunts, snorts and the kind of language that my granny most heartily dissaproved of.
…and where is auto-currant when you need it? Huh? :p
Trust me, there was a lot of grunting and language in my office as I wrote this 😉
I’m appalled at some of the things going on in social media. Like you said, it’s much of a peep show. How people can watch such horrors and be intrigued to share with others instead of report to the police is truly frightening to see what things have or are coming to.
I haven’t given up because sometimes you have to hit bottom before you can rise again. We’ve got to be getting pretty close to the bottom by now…
I love your optimism Ned. Happy weekend! 🙂
it is like the old case of ‘use your power for good, not evil.’ unfortunately, not everyone does this.
“With great power comes great reprehensibility…” Or something like that.
Another one over the center field fence. I differ only in that I don’t think these devices will ever become mere microchips and lights in a box. During the early days of television there were strict moral codes and censorship rules in place. Much of that which is casually posted on social media today would have been cause for arrest a few decades ago. Also, a large amount would have been disallowed by that quaint little “no redeeming social importance” standard.
Al Gore had his “no controlling legal authority,” today we have “no controlling moral authority.”
When pandering to the lower depths of human depravity there seems to be no bottom, no subject matter that someone, somewhere will not post. And because of that social media will never become a benign presence.
Very well said, my friend.
Reblogged this on Kate McClelland.
Thanks for sharing, Kate 😉
This is awful, I had not heard of either incident and I am shocked beyond belief. What has happened to people?
It’s hard to say, other than a social media mob mentality of sorts. Or too much caffeine…
I totally agree with you.
Thanks, Mark
I have the same concerns and many of my columns explore the same issues. What concerns me most is how tech leadership refuses any suggestion of introspection. Zuckerberg is writing evangelical manifestos on Facebook’s ability to bring us together while deflecting criticism of its role in creating a platform for fake news or the steady stream of Facebook Live incidents.
Well said, and very true. Unfortunately, the “it’s not my responsibility” attitude seems to be more prevelant as time goes on. The buck doesn’t seem to stop anywhere any more.
Social media can be used for evil and it can be used for good. Had I seen that video, I would have called the police after I threw up. I can’t believe how detached people have become. It breaks my heart and makes me sad. My issue is and always has been the fact that people use Social Media as “relationships” and texting as a means to communicate. Teenagers can text for hours.. put them on the phone and they have no clue what to say to one another! Really?? So much is lost in just the words. You don’t learn how to make eye contact, use body language the right way or how to read someone else’s. Voice deflection is lost… etc etc etc! I am grateful for the people I have met on WordPress but I find myself really wishing I could meet them in person because they are such awesome people. “People who live in my computer” is such a cold concept. Edward Murrow had no idea how poignant his words are or how they speak of today. While I am glad I can keep up with some news events and pictures of my family, I miss seeing their face…..
I see those very same things, even to the point where my youngest daughter started getting uncomfortable ordering her meal at a restaurant. Only a small percent of true communication is verbal. The rest is body language, eye contact, tone, inflection, etc. These are skills kids are losing thanks to the “age of communication” at your fingertips.