technoculture314-09

The concepts of the death of distance and intimacy at a distance piqued my interest because they reminded me of the relationship I have with my best friend. While we met in person, our relationship takes place almost exclusively via the internet because my friend and I both suffer from bouts of crippling anxiety in the physical company of others. The so called death of distance is certainly true in our case since he cannot bring himself to see me more than a couple of times a year, and when we do neither of us is comfortable, but we communicate extensively online almost every day. What makes our relationship possible is precisely that distance, our mediated intimacy allows us to communicate fluidly in a way that would be impossible were there not a buffer between us. While the idea of intimacy at a distance is highly problematic as it poses serious questions about whether our interaction is becoming somewhat watered down and perhaps even made too easily digestible in the technological age, we must not lose sight of the fact that these technological developments also have the potential to have exactly the opposite effect. People who are unable to have meaningful relationships due to anxiety disorders are able to use the mediation and distance online communication provides to develop intimate relationships they may never have thought possible before the advent of the internet. While this in no way makes up for the lack of physical contact and face to face interaction, it is a valuable source of meaningful contact that many people would otherwise go without. In no way do I mean to imply that the internet does not have huge potential for detrimental effect on human relations but I felt that the last couple of lectures and readings had been utterly depressing that a reminder on the positive effects of new media was overdue.