By Dan Irvin
You know when somebody you know is binge-watching one of your favorite old TV shows? They’ve never seen it and you’re kind of reliving the experience of watching it for the first time through them?
Think of me like that.
About nine months ago, I got my first smart phone. My boss said it was ridiculous that someone with a communications job should still be using a flip phone. I resisted but soon got the message that it was not an option.
And the new phones turn out to be great. I love listening to a podcast while I’m walking the dog, then picking up where I left off through a Bluetooth connection when I get in the car. I think I’m actually spending more time with my beloved wife because I can check my email while we’re watching TV or even working in the yard or whatever.
Inevitably, a couple of weeks ago, like a big dancing hippopotamus near the electronic ocean, I dipped my toe into social media. I can’t quite get my brain around the psychology of it all, but I do like having the latest from my company, the Daybreak Rotary, the chamber, the library, the Town, the City, the United Way, the colleges, all in one place at a glance.
I’ve still got other, better ways to communicate to my family.
But, as a lover and promoter of this Central Illinois community, I’ve been immediately impressed that there’s something raw and immediate that I’ve been missing until now. Somehow being exposed to the aggregated successes, frustrations, and “likes” – if you will, of all these many people surrounding me, should of necessity make me more tolerant, understanding, and open to new ideas.
Maybe we were missing that in the good old days.
WJBC and the medium of radio are constantly learning and developing new ways to interface with us “socially.” We used to say “stay tuned.” I think more than ever we can express the same sentiment with a simple, “Stay with us.”
Dan Irvin is Vice-President of the Bloomington Public Library Foundation Board, and a member of the Heartland Community College Foundation Board.
The opinions expressed within WJBC’s Forum are solely those of the Forum’s author, and are not necessarily those of WJBC or Cumulus Media, Inc.
