So my headline is a topic that can be discussed or argued from now until thy kingdom come.
Let’s face it, since the emergence of the internet and social media, the way we communicate and conduct our business has transformed in ways we may not have imagined 15 years ago or less.
The internet and social media provide people with a range of benefits and opportunities to empower themselves in a variety of ways.
Young and old people can maintain social connections and support networks that otherwise wouldn't be possible, and can access more information than ever before.
My mother, at age 71, is in touch with family members and old friends more than ever before. She can find cooking recipes and flower arrangements as well as tune in to her favourite musical artistes at any time of day and night while she chills out in the comfort of her home.
Social media networking is helping people to develop a voice and building trust, becoming independent, better learners and explorers. With a simple web connection, you can speak to people in many other countries.
This has brought many connections between families, friends, and between fans and athletes. With all that aside, there is also the side that we don’t always like to talk about. The negative end or what may be perceived as that based on how you see it.
In August, JJ Redick, the Philadelphia NBA star, wanted a reset. Like many other sporting personalities, social media was his way of staying current with the news and keeping up with the reactions and the reactions to the reactions. But then he decided to erase all his once-beloved apps including his private Instagram account.
Not long ago, Redick says, he reflexively pulled up social media without thinking about it or even realising it. "It's a dark place," he said of social media. "It's not a healthy place. It's not real. It's not a healthy place for ego"—he pauses slightly—"if we're talking about some Freudian shit. It's just this cycle of anger and validation and tribalism. It's scary, man."
For many of us, it becomes instinctual now. You’re at the red light, standing in line waiting to place your meal order or awaiting the next available bank teller and your phone is within reach, you’re steering into it. Even if you walk out of a room and leave the phone on the table you remain aware of where it is. It is an extension of you.
I can still recall the first day, a national team head coach laid down the rule that no member of the “Soca Warriors” including staff can turn up at the meeting room or for meals with his cell phone. There were times I was fortunate to be let off the hook because my role within the team was centred around communications. But most times I had to either step out or leave the phone off.
There are limits. The 76ers are one of several teams in the NBA that have tried to implement "phone buckets" or "phone bags" on occasion during team meals. Put the phone in the bag and, you know, have real conversations. "I've been on teams where you literally don't talk to each other at dinner," Redick says. "Just six guys on their phones."
In our local sporting world and everywhere else it’s common to see people locked into their devices.. one the bus, the plane, at the table. In many ways the love of social media is understandable. It offers athletes a sense of control over the messaging, a slice of ownership over their public image. It can open doors and entertain the masses. But how much is too much?
National Team managers and team captains use Whatsapp groups to communicate on important matters. People promote “good vibes” through sharing postings and images. Teams are putting more effort into building a fan base on social media and interacting with fans and that's all good.
"It's this generation's cigarettes," says Steve Magness, co-author of Peak Performance and coach to some of the top distance runners in the world. "This is where we're going with phones." The deeper problem, Magness points out, is that we can't visualize the damage that mindless scrolling through Twitter, Instagram and Facebook does to our brains.
The more people you speak to, from top personalities to the dressing room janitor guy, the consensus is clear that phone use has never been more prevalent. It gives almost everyone a voice that can be heard anywhere on the planet as compared to a couple decades before where the only people even knowing you had an opinion would have been your immediate mates around you or your family members. Some see it as decreasing productivity levels and destroying social skills.
So there are the pros and cons of social media, one outweighing the other perhaps. Once you hit that button, you can’t retract what's been said. Or once your attention is focused on the phone, you can't get back the moment that passed just before your eyes, unless of course, you're Phil Connors in "Groundhog Day" and can relive the moment. It all comes down to if you’re mature enough to use it or have knowledge on its consequences.
Shaun Fuentes is a former FIFA Media Officer at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. He is also currently a CONCACAF Competitions Media Officer and has travelled extensively because of sport and media over the past eighteen years. He is also a certified media trainer for athletes.
