At the moment, the majority of people are in a state of frenzy due to the rapid and drastic progression of the Coronavirus, from panic shopping to schools closing down, everything is chaos. But how different would this state of national emergency be if it wasn’t for the influence of technology?
It has only been a few days of being at home after the university stopped face-to-face lectures, but we have already adjusted to this new way of doing our normal daily routine but from the safety of our homes.
Through the use of technology, we have been able to have lectures online with our professors as if we were actually in the classroom. Okay, yes you might spend the first 10/20 minutes making sure that everyone is able to hear and the occasional technical issue, but we’re all adjusting!
Social distancing because of the Coronavirus has really helped push people into the 21st century. Whether this be encouraging people to work from home, moving exams online or doing contact-less deliveries, by using technology to support one another has really helped everyone continue as normal as possible during this difficult time.
It is amazing to see the amount of emails, posts on social media and news stories about members of the public helping one another out to help protect the vulnerable during this anxious period. I have seen people offering to go shopping for those who are self-isolating, companies going above and beyond by making sure they have enough stock on the shelves, teachers preparing weeks worth of school work in just a couple of days for hundreds of children to do at home. While it might not seem like it at the moment, technology really has made the past few weeks run smoother than it would’ve done if this had happened 50 years ago.
I’m going to finish this blog with another thing that has sparked up on the internet over the past few days, which I found particularly enjoyable, is the ‘toilet roll challenge’ (and no it’s not a challenge as to who can find a single roll of toilet roll in the supermarket!) As a way to keep themselves entertained during self-isolation, many celebrities, particularly sports stars, have taken up the challenge to do kick-ups with toilet rolls, sharing their video on social media and nominating others to take part (also know as the ’10 touch challenge’ or ‘stay at home challenge’). As many people continue to accept their nomination and take part, the challenge is becoming just as viral as Covid-19!
Comment below with your thoughts and let me know if you have spotted anything over the past couple of weeks which would have been completely different if it wasn’t for technology.
Stay safe!
Update 28/03/2020: After two weeks of being in self-isolation, I have seen a rise of many different challenges going viral on social media that people have started doing to keep themselves entertained. For example, somone posts an embarrassing image of themselves on Instgram with the comment “Until tomorrow”. Anybody that likes this post will be sent a message saying they have carry on the trend and post their most embarrassing picture. Another challenge that has appeared which is my personal favourite is the baby face challenge where people are posting baby pictures of themselves and nominating others to do the same thing.
The number of challenges that are circling at the moment just goes to show how people have turned to social media in a time of boredom when they are not allowed to leave the house. What would we do without the internet and social media?
MJC Language and New Media Blog 
I love this blog post- really interesting! I do think the internet and all online activity has facilitated our interactions, especially with the Coronavirus pandemic. If we didn’t have technology, it would be really difficult for us to interact with our social networks- or literally do anything. Having our lectures at home this week has been really interesting, even though I had a few sound issues with Blackboard collaborate, I found it a beneficial experience. I also believe it promoted more discussion (relating to the cues filtered out theory), as people weren’t as scared voicing their opinion or asking questions because it is less face threatening than being in an actual lecture theatre. I do agree that having technology in this crisis has pushed all generations and businesses into the C21st. It does lead us to discuss the impact it has had on those who aren’t able/can’t use technology- for those people, it can be really difficult interacting with others when self-isolating. The toilet roll challenge is great. I love how it has become an interactive meme. It definitely encourages everyone to come together to make this time easier- plus it is hilarious! 😊
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This is a great blog Morgan. It has been really interesting to see how the world has dealt with being forced to use media platforms in as many ways as possible. From students having online lectures to people working from home, everyone is having to adjust to a different lifestyle at the moment. I have also noticed all these challenges on Instagram – it’s impossible not to! People are bored and restless so have been coming up with all these challenges to fill their time, and if it’s keeping them entertained and in the house then I think they’re great! The presence of media is playing a big role in saving other peoples lives as it is keeping other people indoors.
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This is a really interesting view of how the lock-down has affected your life personally as well as generally! The challenges going round on social media have been such an interesting way to keep in touch with everyone and even reconnect with old friends.
We are so lucky to have social media in times like this and still have the ability to communicate with ease to our friends and families. I have found it all quite ‘black mirror’-esque and have really been pondering the question as to whether or not after lock-down will life return to completely normal or will we still retain a growth in the use of social media to communicate?
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This is a super interesting take on the current situation and you have made me consider how truly connected we are to each other during this outbreak and how different our experiences would have been 50 years ago. The app Houseparty has really been fundamental for me in maintaining contact with loved ones, to the point where even old friends that I would’ve only seen once a year (if that!) are video-chatting with me once a week. However, I do think social media really demonstrates its constraints during this time. I’m about to write a blog post about the drawbacks of online media consumption during a global crisis, feel free to check it out 😊
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I find this post even more relevant than ever at the moment! Stereotypically, people tend to think that social media is just for the younger generations, and that older generations can’t get involved. This lockdown has proved this is not the case. I’ve introduced my own grandparents to the world of Facetime and even my Nan asked to try out ‘some of those funny face filters’ that we all send her pictures of from Snapchat. With a little time, effort and patience, I don’t see why we can’t expand social media to benefit all generations of people. Obviously, social media is a huge part of modern day life for most of us, so we will continue to use it as normal. I am curious though whether or not these newly introduced people (like my own Nan) will continue to use it when lockdown is over, or if they’re just seeing it as a temporary bit of fun to pass some time? I wonder if this has changed their opinions permanently on social media?
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I also found that this post was quite insightful, it was great that you were able to capture the technology filled times we are currently in and see it from a positive side. All the benefits you described like being able to stay connected to friends, and continue work and education online is something I feel the media and older generations are now celebrating; they are now also having to adapt to technology deemed just for the ‘younger generation’. It’s also interesting how the media is no longer (from what I’ve seen) attributing long periods of time online to poor mental health and (teens) being antisocial, but rather stating that connecting helps to improve it, as I’ve seen in multiple articles. Does anyone else find this?
I was also thinking about whether the older generation will continue using social media and apps after lockdown has ended @ashleighconnelly11. I think it depends on how long we’re in lockdown for and how often they decide/feel the need to use it. If we’re lockdown for months and lets say new users like your Nan decided to use online methods of communicating multiple times a week, they may even start to become accustomed to new ways of communicating or WFH. This may benefit those in long term isolation from family if they live abroad for example. But the truth is we’ll never really know, I guess time will tell!
I found this Reuters article which addressed how older people can make better use of the internet by using Facebook to exercise and adjusting their living situations to better WFH.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-lockdown-socialmed/under-europes-virus-lockdown-social-media-proves-a-lifeline-idUKKBN2142LE
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You make a really insightful point that social distancing has helped push people into the 21st century – I think people are definitely exploring technology’s full capabilities. There have certainly been a lot of social media trends, which is something that RUTV are trying to cover in a video summary though there are too many trends to count!
Technology has brought people together in unimaginable ways – There are a few friends that I have never been so close to until the past few weeks. Some people have been speculating that this could change the use of the Internet for years to come, and even be used to transform society and ensure that equal healthcare and services can still exist after the lockdown. What do you think could happen?
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I really enjoyed this post because the changes that we have had to make due to COVID-19 has really been on which has never been seen or experienced before and the way which technology has supported this shift has really been key during this pandemic. prior to the pandemic hitting the world we almost took technology for granted in the sense that we didn’t appreciate how vast it actually is alongside how far we can actually extend its uses into our everyday work lives and activities. although we haven’t been able to physically socialise with one another face to face, the use of technologies has definitely helped to keep us all connected and sane during this time.
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