Week 4: Lister B

When considering the idea of a ‘public sphere’ I once again think of social networking sites, IM, blogs and forums. People from all over the world can easily contact each other. Before the internet the only means of communication was through things such as letters, telephone calls and telegrams whereas with thanks to new technologies nowadays it is so much easy to keep in touch and engage with people wherever they may be. Being in a particular public sphere enables you to discuss topics and interact with people who have the same interests as yourself, almost like an entertaining deabte. This relates to the idea by Habermas: “the mass media has played a key role in the dissolution of a healthy public sphere by replacing a discourse of critical reason with entertainment and spectacle” (Habermas cited in Lister et al (2007);177) This idea also argues against the idea of public spheres as it is implying that the idea of a public sphere use to be quite serious and professional where as now it seems to be taken less seriously.

I know I’ve mentioned this in previous posts but I really think we take this fantastic technology for granted. Most of us just sign on to social networking sites, IM or check E-mails daily without thinking how lucky we are to have such a technology. Would any of you guys be able to live without? Because I personally don’t think I could, pathetic as it sounds I’m pretty hooked on the whole social networking malarkey!

When the Internet first arose there may have been a few set backs or limitations which prevented from engaging with others as much as you would like to. However as technology has improved our means of communication on the internet has also developed. Equipment such as webcams, Skype, and file sharing has enabled the public sphere to be closer than ever before. I also feel that you still have to consider what is ‘real’ on the internet and what isn’t. False identities or false information could be seen as limitations of being in a public sphere as you don’t necessarily know whether all the information you access is true.