That's the way the cookie crumbles

The phrase "It is what it is" was famously used by Donald Trump regarding COVID-19 deaths in a 2020 interview with British journalist Jonathan Swan for Axios on HBO. The, at times, tense, direct questioning style of British journalists has often defined their interviews with Trump.

A week ago a family member of mine used the above expression when I signalled my frustration in not being able to solve a family problem. The use of that expression can accompany others that are much in fashion in this century:

1. Thank you for sharing.

2.  Thank you for reaching out.

3. Protocol

It is now virtually impossible to talk to anybody on the phone. The protocol is that you must first text.

The latest answer to a phone call is about a woman who says something like, “What is your name and the purpose of your call? You give out your name and add, “friend”. The woman then asks you to wait while she goes to inquire if the person is available. Up to now in countless attempts with friends I get, “The person is not available.”

This is supposed to be the age of communication. A local journalist works for a weekly periodical and told me (it took him two weeks to get back on my email to him) that he has over 185,000 emails of which 90% he has not opened. He says he is overwhelmed. The reason for the many emails is that many periodicals in this city do not have a receptionist or a phone.

In that past century if you did not like something you might send a letter to a newspaper’s editor. But you would think of having to write it and then go to the post office and buy a stamp so in the end the letter would not be written. Now with social media you can vent your angry and nasty feelings immediately.

Finally I do contribute to Facebook and Twitter with links to my blogs. I have written 6,854 of them and I believe that most of them have that important word “content”. People then “react” and or leave one of those horrible (in my mind) emojis. They could write, “Nice photograph”, or good blog or anything else. Is using an emoji a form of communication?

I would like to remind these people that the first ever photograph in a newspaper happened in 1874 in a now defunct NY City newspaper. Before that date photographs could not appear anywhere except on gallery walls or as expensive photogravures as the author picture in a 19^th century book. When the halftone process (many dots) was created a photograph of the Steinway Building in New York City appeared in that newspaper. What is important is that the photograph appeared in an article that had copy (words).

Now it is almost impossible to communicate  by talking or writing.

What’s next in this age of communication?