I, 21st Century Communicator

BY LAURA ALEXANDRA MIGALLEN

Communication is everywhere even though we barely recognize its existence. Though it may be as simple as it seems, communication is far more than the mere communicating that most of us have known of. Taking a semester of communication course did not only enable me to make sense of what I speak and think, because apart from that, I’ve also learned to make sense of the world and happenings around me. I thought that being an effective communicator takes a mastery of language and mastery of verbal communication, but now I know that it’s also being critical on analyzing and evaluating technicalities beyond given information.

With the advancement of technology, different aspects of people’s lives were changed. One of these is the aspect of communication, means of transmission of information evolved through time and the medium of communication has widened throughout the process which coined the term ‘Media Convergence’. Information and Communication were made accessible through time and people gained a lot of benefit from having an easy access to a wide array of information and means of communication. But like every coin in the world, the impact of digital age in communication is two-faced, it has its own pros and cons.

Media convergence made it easy for people to look up for information and contents online, but it also exposed them into threats of false information that are scattered around the different media available on the internet. Online world enabled people to share their own voices and be heard more than ever, which unraveled different sides of stories for people to weigh on and contextualize. But on the other side, it also made people prone to irrelevant stories that are either manipulative or fake. Virtual social world powered through social media also aid a lot of people into exploring their individual and social identity with its environment, although some identities were built, some were also broken because of irresponsible use of social media that caused identity gaps on some individual.

Overall, what I’ve learned from Communication 10 is that our susceptibility from the threats behind the information that we view or use from different platforms of media that are emerging through time is within our responsibility. The information that we let out on the other hand, leaves an impact on those who feed on it so we should be careful and just with what we say. Now I, a 21st century communicator, will practice all of the concepts and points I’ve learned from the class in real life by becoming a critical and responsible communicator and a wise content consumer from the different media platforms that are present on digital age.