The Ecology of Crackberries

Ecology is a pretty wide based term meaning the study of interaction between people in different environments. In my opinion, the largest instigator of social interaction in a number of different ways is one little miracle machine: the Blackberry.

The impact of Blackberries has been astronomical for the general public. After first being marketed out for businessmen, the focus has shifted onto a younger generation of people. With the introduction of student Blackberry plans offering all of the social perks of the internet, it’s become rare to see a student walking around without one of these phones as an extension of his/her hand. Their primary function was to provide businessmen with the means to keep in contact with their work while away from the office; their basic function now is as a networking tool for the younger generation. People don’t even have to carry around a laptop for “mobile” internet anymore - with a few clicks of the small buttons, people anywhere are able to access the internet from wherever they can get service.

It’s important to discuss Neil Postman with regards to the growing popularity of Blackberries and their functional capacity. In an address called “The Humanism of Media Ecology,” Postman writes, “A medium is a technology within which a culture grows; that is to say, it gives form to a culture’s politics, social organization, and habitual ways of thinking.” What we can take away from Postman’s ideas is the idea that the Blackberry Corporation has really appealed and grown with the publics demand for new mobile technology that never has to be held in anything bigger than your pocket. The ways of thinking have changed dramatically since these became available and affordable to the general public - people have simply stopped. You don’t need to think, really; there’s a little machine in your pocket that can do all of your thinking for you. Blackberries are a medium, containing the internet and an infinite amount of other applications that you can use to access information and news.

Why is it that people can’t really seem to put these things down? What is so mesmerizing about colored plastic coated wires with a little screen that it has made people coin the term “crackberries”? Are we so dependant on technology that we are obligated to invest in something that can keep us “plugged in” constantly, even when we’re out and about?

Works Cited

Postman, Neil. “The Humanism of Media Ecology.” Media Ecology Association. 17 June 2000. Web. 9 Oct. 2009. _ecology.html>.