Part 1
“Beyonce gets REAL about the Music Industry” YouTube, uploaded by AllTea TV, 29 Nov 2019,
In this interview Beyonce expresses her frustrations with the music industry and how the media has brainwashed society. As an artist who finds beauty in the creation of albums, Beyonce describes how she notices that people in the music industry are pushing out quick singles rather than taking the time to produce higher quality work. This can stem from the urge to give the listeners what they want, as there is now access to music at a much faster rate and wider spectrum than in previous decades. Beyonce states that “people are so brainwashed when they get up in the morning and click on your computer to see all these pictures … and it's all you think of.” She feels that technology has caused a disconnect between music and humans as people can be more worried about an artists’ personal life rather than the art of their music. This interview projected how the media has altered the direction of the music industry.
Haupt, Angela. "Our Attention Spans are Suffering. Maybe there’s a Way to Get them Back." The Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2022, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/our-attention-spans-are-suffering-maybe-there-s/docview/2621861277/se-2.
Angela Haupt’s article identifies the biggest takeaways from Johann Hari’s book “Stolen Focus” where he dives into the effects that social media has on our abilities to stay present. Haupt’s purpose of this article was to elaborate on what she comprehended from Hari’s research. She addresses technology’s role in society being designed to distract us, as companies often choose their marketing strategies off of profitability. As a result of this, ads and social media platforms have grown to manipulate users into scrolling longer or downloading additional apps. The article brings in an example of a study on 136 students who took a test with their phones either turned off or on. The students who were interrupted with messages during the test happened to score 20 percent lower than those who didn’t. The article breaks down the ways technology is stripping society of their focus while offering alternatives of how not to fall too deep into these traps. Haupt prompts its readers to implement Hari’s “10 minute rule” that neglects the urge to check their phones right away while also finding a flow.
Sarow, Christoph. “How will AI change the world?” Youtube, uploaded by Ted-Ed, 6 Dec. 2022,
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The Ted-Ed video compares the abilities of humans to artificial intelligence. The video gives insight on how AI’s downfall could be its lack of emotion while also having the ability to change the world. One of the biggest issues with building AI systems is giving them a fixed objective that requires humans to be so specific in their instructions. This certainty of objective completion can make AI too robotic, which forces viewers to think about a civilization that is run by machines rather than humans. The video uses research from Aristotle and Keynes that this could lead to technological unemployment. The editor did a good job at showing that AI has the power to advance the world but if it's used inadequately society can be headed into a scary place.
“Ai-Generated Short Content: The Next Big Threat to Our Attention Spans.” Manson’s Content Brewery, 9 Mar. 2023, https://manson.space/blog/ai-short-content-attention-span-threat/.
The article addresses how new AI language models and generated content are the next potential threats to our attention spans. Short-form content has played a huge role in how society takes in new information with Tiktok being a prime example of it. 15 second videos have turned into hours of scrolling resulting in the brain being trained to seek for quicker information rather than engaging with more complex ideas. Professor Gloria Mark’s research showed the change in the average attention on a screen to be 2 1⁄2 minutes in 2004, to now 47 seconds. This article attempts to prove that AI is shifting towards easy-to-consume content that is prioritized over more in depth and comprehensive content. The article acknowledges that the new way of technology is not going anywhere and marketers or influencers are only going to further capitalize off these opportunities. The writers suggest for their audience to accept the changes for the good that it brings but find balance in reading and more engaging activities.
Ö. Sedat. “How Artificial Intelligence Is Making Us Dumber.” LinkedIn, 9 May 2023,
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-artificial-intelligence-making-us-dumber-sedat-%C3%B6z%C3%A7elik/.
Sedat Ö speaks on the additions of artificial intelligence and the possibilities of it backfiring on society. He opens up with a phrase "Cogito ergo sum" - "I think, therefore I am." from René Descartes, the father of post-medieval Western philosophy, to support his idea that AI will force thinking to not be a unique human trait. With the ability to write music, play chess or analyze data at a human’s command, Sedat poses the question of “What will happen when we rely on machines to do our thinking for us to our own cognitive abilities when we stop using them?” Sedat uses research to show how people are losing the ability to remember information or do simple math. He is worried that AI is heading in a direction that is too robotic and is creating a species that will no longer think for itself. This article theorizes the fears that can come from the expansion of artificial intelligence, but does not include many facts as this is an opinion opposing AI advancements.
Gallucci, Kristin. “Social Media is Making Us Unsocial.” Youtube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 27 Nov. 2019,
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Kristin Gallucci believes that technology is simultaneously connecting us and isolating us. In her TedTalk she shares her belief that “Social media should be a support to real relationships, not a catalyst to losing them.” She acknowledges that present day media has changed every aspect of our daily lives from how we work, learn and most of all take in human interaction. She noticed that in a public setting her peers were more excited to find a good spot to take instagram pictures in rather than connecting with those around them, which caused her to dive into research on the topic. Studies show that in 2018 people spent an average of 2 hours on social media a day, and it increased by 2 minutes per day. Gallucci acknowledges that art and history is being replaced with media and platforms such as Instagram and expresses her hopes for humans to connect back to reality.
“Is Social Media a Drug?” Anchored Tides Recovery, 13 July 2023, https://anchoredtidesrecovery.com/is-social-media-a-drug/.
This article brings up the debate of whether or not social media is a drug. It argues that the effects of addiction to social media can compare to the use of drugs. The writer uses extensive research to further prove how social media can affect humans both mentally and physically, and introduces the topic of dopamine. Dopamine, the neurotransmitter that associates with pleasure, has been shown to occur when using apps or other social media platforms. Dopamine levels can even go as far as rising when one posts a picture of themselves and can see the like count increase. The article describes how social media has become a coping mechanism for many individuals and is starting to become an issue for people at a young age. The author also touches on the effects of social networking and how self-image has impacted this area due to social media. This article did a great job at portraying the idea of social media being a drug through visual images, while also providing detailed research for each topic.
Huberman, Andrew. “After A Few Minutes Of Social Media, This Happens.” Youtube, uploaded by Chris Williamson, 9 Aug. 2022,
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In this discussion, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman is asked about the extent of our phones being a trigger to dopamine levels. He explains that the first interaction with social media when someone picks up their phone is the most heightened level that society experiences. He defines dopamine as a type of novelty surprise in a sense that we are on some type of exciting track. Huberman compares the feelings of dopamine to serotonin as they have opposite reactions. Serotonin puts us in a calm space while someone off of dopamine can experience a lot of pursuit. He brings up the doubt that comes with scrolling for too long, but there's an urge to continue due to the unknown of when that “jackpot” post will come and satisfy the feeling many look for. When we then interact with that, we allow the technology to frame our pages and content around whatever it was that caused one's dopamine levels to rise.
“We All Got Tricked into Content Addiction.” Youtube, uploaded by Horses, 7 Apr. 2023,
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This short film studies why humans are not as able to complete activities or sit in silence without being overwhelmed or feeling anxiety. It elaborates on the “Dopamine Myth” that alludes to social media satisfying one’s “fix” through a funny video or arousing image. The act of trying to find a post that satisfies someone shows to have higher dopamine levels than the act of finding what one is scrolling for. The video explained that the more people consume, the hungrier they get. It brings up the theory that technology was theorized to take away baggage and make problems easier, yet it only replaced it with other baggage. “Technology has relieved us from a physical workload but replaced it with a spiritual exhaustion.” The creators of the video wants society to think about when the world will know it has reached a point where technology has created more harm than good, if they are only digging themselves into a deeper hole. This video ultimately sheds light on the negative effects of technology and digital life towards society.
"Why are our Attention Spans Shortening? Students Discuss the Reasons People are so Easily Distracted." Wall Street Journal (Online), Nov 01, 2022. ProQuest, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/why-are-our-attention-spans-shortening-students/docview/2730865099/se-2.
In this article, The Wall Street Journal asked students to give their opinions on why they believe people are so easily distracted. In an economy where attention spans are decreasing, the appetite for instant pleasure is growing and a few students are able to point out different reasons why this could be occurring. Harvard student, Lucas Martin, explains that televised content is currently bland and the creativity through social media raised these standards tremendously. With the ability to touch different forms of media, Lucas sees this generation being less willing to spend time consuming a poor product. Two students emphasized the role social media platforms have had on the way humans digest information. Apps such as TikTok have sped up complex ideas into seconds and changed the ways we interact with real life. This article offers various viewpoints on how the media continues to decrease our attention spans but offers unique solutions as to how we can manage this transition as well. Students voiced that society can’t be too hard on themselves for being easily distracted, but efforts can be made to slow down consumption by simply reading a book.
Carstens, Deborah S, PhD., P.M.P., Samuel K. Doss PhD., and Stephen C. Kies. "Social Media Impact on Attention Span." Journal of Management & Engineering Integration, vol. 11, no. 1, 2018, pp. 20-27. ProQuest, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/social-media-impact-on-attention-span/docview/2316725647/se-2.
Dr. Deborah Carstens’ article was constructed off a study on 209 respondents who participated in a self-administrated questionnaire. The research aimed to conclude three different hypotheses; One, the number of social media accounts has no relevance to the length of attention spans. Two, there is no difference in attention span length amongst frequent use of episodic social media and frequent use of non-episodic social media accounts. And finally, that there is no difference in attention span length amongst users preferring mobile versions of social media versus computer versions. To get a better understanding of the study, the article broke down the difference between episodic and non-episodic social media. Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and Vine are all examples of episodic media due to the limitations of media, characters or time lengths of a post. Carstens explains how individuals are constantly on an information overload from both the quantity of information available and the speed of which information gets into the hands of individuals through advertising and multimedia. She addresses the growth in time that kids now spend using social media as approximately 73% of adolescents are users of social networking sites. This article proved all three hypotheses to be true through numerous questionnaire forms. However, these results did not fully match the direction of the research possibly due to the set up of the questionnaire forms.
Francobollo. “We’re Dead.” We’re Dead, Square Leg Records Ltd, 2018. Spotify,
Francbollo’s song “We’re Dead” opens the conversation about the negative effects that come from excessively using social media platforms. The song addresses issues revolving around the large gap between the online and offline worlds, lack of human connection and people’s need for social media approval. “We’re just slaves to the screen, and we’re all dead inside” touches on the idea that society is overly consumed in media rather than being present to real life. He later states in the song “Nature’s clock. We’ll all rot some day. We’re all dead.” Francobollo is using this as a metaphor to describe how social media is a ticking time bomb that'll eventually implode upon us. He believes that due to phone screens and social media platforms, society’s brains will eventually rot. This song is a wake-up call to remind society how they prioritize technology more than genuine connections.
Part 2
For WP2, I chose to explore the broad topic of social media, then focusing on its role in society and how it evolved and impacted us over time. Prior to exploring the discourse surrounding social media and technology, I only had the vaguest sense of its importance to our attention spans, the interactions we have with those around us, and the direction it is leading us into.
What prompted me into choosing this topic has been the recent realizations of myself in current settings such as the classroom and the workspace. Growing up, I have always labeled myself as “social” due to me constantly connecting with my peers and being able to group myself into diverse friendships. Through my adolescent years I can identify being curious at all times and always willing to learn more, especially in a classroom setting. However, through my recent college years and post-covid, I find myself doing the complete opposite. I have noticed that it has been extremely difficult for me to ask questions in class, speak and network with my peers, and even attend big social events. With a higher screen time than ever before and many days of feeling like I am not learning like I used to, I became curious as to how much my phone has impacted these areas of my life.
My early research began with technology as a whole, and how it has evolved overtime. Yet, shortly into my research I started to focus more on how our phones have decreased our attention spans and even began to touch on artificial intelligence. I was not surprised to read that humans are in fact losing our attention spans by the day, but rather the extent of how much it declined in just a few years. Through research I discovered that social media is a direct link to dopamine, or the neurotransmitter that associates with pleasure. Dopamine levels can even go as far as rising when one posts a picture of themselves and can see the like count increase. Numerous studies have shown that the more people consume, the hungrier they get when it comes to digital media.
The idea that social media is ironically making us less social was something that was also interesting to read about. TedTalk speaker Kristin Gallucci talked about her noticing the lack of interactions in social settings, and the focus to find a more aesthetically pleasing area for apps such as Instagram. This is something that I notice not only myself, but my peers around me doing everywhere I go. Rather than capturing nature or beautiful moments with our eyes, we pull out our phones immediately. Sayings such as “phone eats first” exemplifies that humans can’t even do a simple task such as eating without capturing an image of it first.
When looking into artificial intelligence, I was able to learn the most and gain a new perspective on this topic. AI is something that is prevalent on college campuses, as my peers and I use it often. When connecting it to the topic of low attention spans, it is headed in the direction of being one of the roots of this decline. Similar to TikTok, AI generated content is looking to condense information into summary paragraphs to focus on getting straight to the point. This is scary to think about that humans will not only start to no longer think for themselves but lack depth of core knowledge.
Something that I really enjoyed about this piece was implementing sources that resonated with my interests, to support my overall topic. Being able to connect the idea that social media is a drug to the art of music and visuals was extremely fun to me. Hearing one of my favorite artists, Beyonce, talk about the music industry shifting because of the media excited me to explore my topic even more. The art in a few of the articles that I read were also very appealing to me as a reader. The image of different social media platforms and apps being shaped into the form of pills to represent addiction helped me tie everything together.
After further research on my topic, I am able to be more at ease with my concerns in the classroom and human interactions. I believe my piece to be an op-ed as it is very informative but the research leans toward one side of social media, rather than the other or even being neutral. My WP2 focuses on more of the negative effects that come with social media and technological advancements more than the positive ones.
Annotated Bibliography
Spotify Content:
Francobollo. “We’re Dead.” We’re Dead, Square Leg Records Ltd, 2018. Spotify,
Youtube Video:
“Beyonce gets REAL about the Music Industry” YouTube, uploaded by AllTea TV, 29 Nov 2019,
Gallucci, Kristin. “Social Media is Making Us Unsocial.” Youtube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 27 Nov. 2019,
.
Huberman, Andrew. “After A Few Minutes Of Social Media, This Happens.” Youtube, uploaded by Chris Williamson, 9 Aug. 2022,
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“Psychiatrist's Tip for Increasing Attention Span” Youtube, uploaded by HealthyGamerGG, 26 Jan. 2021.
Sarow, Christoph. “How will AI change the world?” Youtube, uploaded by Ted-Ed, 6 Dec. 2022,
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“We All Got Tricked into Content Addiction.” Youtube, uploaded by Horses, 7 Apr. 2023,
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Article From a Scholarly Journal:
Carstens, Deborah S, PhD., P.M.P., Samuel K. Doss PhD., and Stephen C. Kies. "Social Media Impact on Attention Span." Journal of Management & Engineering Integration, vol. 11, no. 1, 2018, pp. 20-27. ProQuest, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/social-media-impact-on-attention-span/docview/2316725647/se-2.
Coulter, D'Andrea. "Generation Z: Social Media, Technology, and New Generations." The Journal of Social Media in Society, vol. 12, no. 2, Dec. 2023, pp. 299+. Gale Academic OneFile, https://go-gale-com.libproxy2.usc.edu/ps/i.do?p=AONE&id=GALE%7CA781524050&v=2.1&it=r&aty=ip&enforceAuth=true&linkSource=delayedAuthFullText&oweAuth=true&userGroupName=usocal_main
Okunev, Rhoda. “The Psychology of Evolving Technology.” SpringerLink, Apress, https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-1-4842-8686-9. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024.
Seymour, Cheyenne. Successes and Setbacks of Social Media: Impact on Academic Life. 1st edition. 2020, WIley Online Library, https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119695233. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024.
Sheldon, Pavica., Rauschnabel, Philipp., Honeycutt, James M. The Dark Side of Social Media: Psychological, Managerial, and Societal Perspectives. 1st ed. Elsevier Science & Technology; 2019. Pp. 33-48. Wiley Online Library,
https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.libproxy1.usc.edu/doi/epdf/10.1002/9781119695233.ch1. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024.
"Why are our Attention Spans Shortening? Students Discuss the Reasons People are so Easily Distracted." Wall Street Journal (Online), Nov 01, 2022. ProQuest, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/why-are-our-attention-spans-shortening-students/docview/2730865099/se-2.
Page on a website:
“Ai-Generated Short Content: The Next Big Threat to Our Attention Spans.” Manson’s Content Brewery, 9 Mar. 2023, https://manson.space/blog/ai-short-content-attention-span-threat/.
Ö. Sedat. “How Artificial Intelligence Is Making Us Dumber.” LinkedIn, 9 May 2023,
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-artificial-intelligence-making-us-dumber-sedat-%C3%B6z%C3%A7elik/.
“Is Social Media a Drug?” Anchored Tides Recovery, 13 July 2023, https://anchoredtidesrecovery.com/is-social-media-a-drug/.
Article from a digital newspaper:
Haupt, Angela. "Our Attention Spans are Suffering. Maybe there’s a Way to Get them Back." The Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2022, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/our-attention-spans-are-suffering-maybe-there-s/docview/2621861277/se-2.
Books:
Burns, Kelli S. Social Media: A Reference Handbook. ABC-CLIO, 2017. Pp. 155-179. Leavey Library
Hurst, Charles E. Social Inequality: Forms, Causes, and Consequences. Allyn and Bacon, 1992. Pp. 44-53. Leavey Library
Heaven, Douglas. Machines That Think: Everything You Need to Know about the Coming Age of Artificial Intelligence. John Murray Learning, 2022. Pp. 97-108. Leavey Library