President Obama Declares War on the Overabundance of Technology
Author: Aron Schoenfeld
Lost in the news this past weekend was President Obama’s speech at Hampton University in Virginia where he stated that sudden new technologies such as the iPod, iPad, Nintendo Wii and various social media platforms are bad for democracy.
Since President Obama is known for his use of technology and always being on his blackberry, we found this rather interesting. In his speech, President Obama made reference to various technologies popping up and how “there is a ton of noise out there.” From the President’s point of view, he finds it very hard to differentiate between what is “real” on the internet and what isn’t.
Entrepreneurs now tend to use Twitter and Facebook feeds as our main source of breaking news. The more followers you have, the easier it is to spread a message, idea or viewpoint to the masses. The larger challenge here is that most entrepreneurs have developed a habit of not even reading articles. Instead, they just see their twitter feed, which displays a very easy to read (and catchy) headline. The article may not even fully relate back to the implied topic, but they’ll decide to “re-tweet” the message simply because it sounds appealing.
Entrepreneurs have begun sharing news over social media at an alarming rate. News spreads virally regardless if it”s true or not. Folks take the approach of “well I will sort through that later,” because they don’t want to miss the opportunity to be one of the first to get the headline out.
An excerpt from President Obama’s speech:
“Allowing you to compete in the global economy is the first way your education can prepare you. But it can also prepare you as citizens. With so many voices clamoring for attention on blogs and on cable, on talk radio, it can be difficult at times to sift through it all; to know what to believe; to figure out who’s telling the truth and who’s not. Let’s face it, even some of the craziest claims can quickly gain traction. I’ve had some experience in that regard.”
So in this age of technology and social media, entrepreneurs need to remember there is a lot of noise out there. Instead of blogging or tweeting to appear as an expert, get out and show people the real you – someone they can trust and rely on.
In person communication and meeting people face to face is the best way to guarantee authenticity and ensure that your message gets through as originally intended. So remember, when given the choice, get out and do it in person!
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