By EK Wills
Driving home with my son yesterday, we were listening to the radio and I was struck by how specifically directed it was to my generation.
We started talking about how there used to be popular songs, bands and types of music mainly dictated by what we were exposed to as kids.
We wondered then what he would listen to as an adult because he also plays in a band.
This led to thinking how different it is now because everyone has access to so many forms of media at their fingertips. If a person is interested in K pop1 they can follow that fan base, download an MP3 and watch a video on YouTube – anywhere, anytime.
We speculated that in the future, radio stations will be obsolete because there will be no demand for a particular style and everyone will have their own playlists. Of course, we are already seeing this but when you think about it, you realize how disjointed this can make us.
I recently asked a millennial what they talk about in social circles and she told me how socially awkward she was because there never seemed to be common ground. Her interests are self-professed ‘geek’ material, so not easily turned into social chitchat. Online games, the latest conspiracy theory2 or ‘shipping’3 of characters from established media do not convert well in all social circles.
Movies are still mainstream but they are fragmenting into Netflix more than blockbuster releases so these become specialized, too. If you haven’t heard of the series and watched the entire 7 seasons in a binge session, then you have nothing to add to a conversation.
No one dares to talk politics because someone might disagree with you and this would lead to confrontation and how do people discuss differences of opinion without a full-blown argument, anyway?
So where does this leave communication? It seems to leave everyone in separate media rooms, absorbed in the newest game or trend, experiencing it with their online tribe because they are the ones that ‘get’ them. And they are not learning how to interact IRL4.
My husband despaired when we moved into a larger home to accommodate growing children because he felt alone in a large space: the kids all have headphones and are plugged into their area of interest, now in their own rooms.
Luckily, the grandparents came to visit and we instilled an evening of board games again (neglected since the hectic move). Now we have a common interest other than daily news at the dinner table and it’s nice to hear some old-fashioned round table conversation.
It seems that board games are enjoying a resurgence amongst millennials, too. Games like Settlers of Catan (popular in 30 languages) and Monopoly with credit card features. Just like evolution: some are new and others are adapting to their environment.
Maybe there is still hope for relationships IRL…
1. Korean pop music – mostly girl or boy bands groomed from childhood
2. millennial conspiracy theories abound from Illuminati to flat-Earthers and the moon landing never happened
3. from the word relationship, fans fantasize about characters (in film, literature, television etc.) in a romantic relationship.
4. IRL in real life
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