Alright, look. It is becoming abundantly clear that Twitter and "new media" (whatever that means) are going to run that creaky old dinosaur Journalism to the brink of extinction. Which is fine. Who has time for substance and content, or fact-finding and research, anyway? And what does any of it have to do with Rihanna? She was, like, a toddler when the Berlin Wall fell so what the hell do we care about it? Next!
As Twitter's reach continues to expand, with the "social network" becoming a source of breaking news, we will see more people like
Shane Powers (or
@shameheadboy) becoming increasingly influential as cultural pundits.
Is this a good thing?
Yes and no.
In terms of
Powers specifically, he seems like a guy whose heart is in the right place (and, always, on his sleeve). By all accounts, he's a dedicated father and cultural observer who's simply trying to share his experience with people. (He's also a former
Survivor cast member, but that's neither here nor there within the framework of this particular commentary.) What's troubling to me about Powers' blog - and others like it - is the volume of response that falls somewhere along the lines of "you really make me think!" In fact, Powers himself - who believes his true calling is to take his cultural observation to satellite radio via Howard Stern - purports to be a thought-provoker. On many occasions, he has made his readership well aware of the fact that he needs a companion who will challenge him intellectually; he won't be satisfied with the simple physicality of attraction.
And, hey, good for him. Nevermind that in referring to women as "mamas," he often comes across as some neo-A.C. Slater, able to appreciate a woman but not quite capable of clearing that last Cro-Magnon hurtle. Sure, women are technically "mamas" in the biological sense, and maybe I'm just not suave enough to employ the term but I've got to tell you, if I hear a guy in the checkout line referring "this mama," I'm going to peg him as an ignorant asshole nine times out of ten. But that's my hangup. Shane is clearly no misogynist, so the problem is probably my interpretation of the term, not his application. I digress.
On the one hand, that's great. Shane's blog is making people think. Tough to criticize that. So I won't. If you're motivating people in any way, that's admirable. I've got no beef.
The real drag, to me, about blogs and Twitter being the primary point of cultural and societal discourse is that it serves as further evidence that statements like this one are somehow revelatory to people:
"When people have jobs, they feel safe, and they feel the self-respect and accomplishment of a hard days work. And this translates into a happier USA." (Taken from www.shanepowers.com)Okay, so, you mean to tell me that when people aren't broke/unemployed, they feel better, and when individuals feel better, the collective benefits? The statement itself is true, of course, and there's ample evidence to support it, but the frightening thing to me is that there are people out there who read it and thought, "shit! He's right!" These same people must be awestruck by the fact that the sun manages to rise and set at approximately the same times, in approximately the same locations, on a daily basis.
Powers also noted earlier in the week that he is complimented often on his attitudes regarding women ("mamas"). While this is fantastic (it would be a shame if he were being criticized for asserting that a beautiful women can also be - gasp! - intelligent), I find it disturbing that his views - which can be distilled down to "You never lay your hand on a woman!" and "Women's brains are as beautiful as their bodies!" - would be regarded as anything other than Common Fucking Sense. Is this where we're at? Really?
Look, I enjoy
www.shanepowers.com and I think it's pretty clear that
@shameheadboy "gets it." I've got a lot of respect for the fact that he lays himself bare on a daily basis for what he clearly believes is the betterment of himself and those around him. That's noble work, I don't care how or where you're doing it. What I'm asking from Shane and his readers is simple:
Let's up the fucking ante a bit. Please.
If you're a man or woman and you think Shane's views on equal rights and feminism are worthy of applause, dig a bit. Read some Angela Davis, read some Emma Goldman.
If you think Shane's take on what Veteran's Day means to this country is thought-provoking and heartstring-tugging, pick up a copy of
The Things They Carried and follow through with it. It's a little longer than your average 350-word blog post but, trust me, the payoff is immense.
And, if at all possible, could we attempt to move the dialogue beyond, "right on, bro!" or "fuck you, dick!" I know, it takes a little more time to sit down and craft a response to something that provoked reflection and analysis but, hey, it's not like you're going to be spending that time reading the newspaper or anything, right? Let's set aside fifteen minutes where we might otherwise be looking for tearjerking YouTube clips and formulate some opinions.
I'm just as culpable here. I mean, I'm using a blog to express my disdain for the fact that blogs have replaced the op-ed column. Pot. Kettle. Black.
It is what it is. But it doesn't have to be.
If blogs, Twitter and YouTube are really going to be the hubs for social and cultural discourse, then let's not make that synonymous with the dumbing down of our society, okay? I don't feel like that's asking a lot. It's an exciting time to be alive but there's a lot of work to be done, and settling for lowest common denominator platitudes doesn't - and shouldn't - cut it.
In short, if
www.shanepowers.com, or any blog like it, opened your eyes, let that be the
first step, not the
last. Fair enough?
