The Primary Oral Culture

The Primary Oral Culture

In today’s media society it takes a matter of minutes before an event such as a celebrity wedding or a school shooting becomes headline news through the internet, television, or radio. Technology is expanding old forms of communication, and also creating new forms which are transforming societies around the world. Statistics show that more and more people are using cell phones throughout the world, which can be shown through statistical graphs from the creation of the cell phone. I feel that in today’s society speech plays a more prominent role than writing. I feel that the invention of the TV had a strong impact on society when it became commercially available in the late 1930s. In today’s society the television set has become a common communication device. The amount of television viewed around the world is increasing at alarming rates. Graphs regarding this study show steep increases in hours per viewer, which are leading to other problems associated with weight and problems in academics. Less and less people are reading newspapers and other forms of literature, which I personally feel is due to a predominately oral society. This is leading to lower test scores among teens because they are spending most of their time in front of the television, and less of their time on school work and studying. Also, this is leading children to become obese and unhealthy. I feel that reading is not a leisure activity which most people do predominately. In Christy Busby’s article “Why are people reading less and less these days?” he says, “People are so tethered to cell phones, high definition televisions, MP3 players, iPhones and the Internet that books must seem old-fashioned, boring and slow to some.” I agree with Busby when he says that people feel that reading is slower than other forms of communications. With today’s fast paced moving technological advances; people feel that reading is a thing of the past. This idea directly relates with the conflict between oral/writing communications. Changes in technology are acting as a catalyst in the movement of oral communication.

In today’s society politics are completely centered on oral communication. Presidential debates are very important during an election year, because they shape the publics view and show the candidate’s ability under pressure. I feel that the public would not get the same impression of the candidates if there were no debates. Written documents would not suffice enough for voters, because they are not able to look at the candidate all around. Presidential campaigns have a large effect on voters view points too. Howard Dean’s “Concession” Speech during the 2004 election had a major impact on his success in the campaign. Many people felt that what he did was not appropriate, because he looked like more of a football coach than a president. News channels around the country replayed the speech and highlighted his aggressive voice and antics. Howard Dean finished second to Kerry in the New Hampshire primary. One week prior to his “Concession” speech Dean had a thirty percent lead in the polls, but after the speech he eventually lost to Kerry. This fact shows how big of an effect oral speech can have on the public. If Howard Dean had written down his view points instead of his saying his “Concession” speech it would not have that big of a setback on his campaign. The news media is heavily run around politics, which is taking over the political views presented through newspapers and magazines. It is clear that more Americans watch the nightly news when compared to the number of people who read newspapers. A classic example of a news network which has very clear political views is the Fox News Channel. Most of the views presented on this channel are conservative, and most of the debates are between conservative and liberal view points. One of the most famous conservative new casters on the channel is Bill O'Reilly. His show consists of his opinions on current events happening around the world, and debates with guests on the show. Viewers are able to see both the right wing and left wing side of politics in an oral perspective, which is much different than reading it on paper. Peoples overall political viewpoints are usually shaped by their surroundings and interactions with others. For example, some parts of the country and social groups tend to have specific political ideologies. I feel that people’s political ideologies are shaped by the people and physical happenings around them, and not by written information and data. Personally, as a child I never read much information about politics or other data surrounding the government. Most of my political viewpoints have been shaped by my surroundings and my social interactions. As society progresses and technology becomes more advanced; oral culture will become more dominant.