Here’s Looking At You, Kids

Posted By: itcanneverbe @ 04/09/2008 4:39:11 PM

Comment: I am part of the "look at me" generation. I would have to say that the computer is causing us to have very poor people skills. If I can talk to my friend online, or watch people through videos on youtube, I do not gain any person to person contact. This will only hinder you later on in the real world, wherebeing able to interact with a person is an important skill. While talking in person I have to be aware of my body language and tone of voice, where as on the computer I can lie completly to someone's face and they would have no "cues" to tell them otherwise. I know that I am addicted to facebook and whenever I go out with friends I spend extra time to get ready. This extra time is to protect me the ridicule I may receive from an unflattering picture being posted. And I have no control over it, and I do not have the power to take down a photo of me.
There are also many positive aspects to being on the computer as well. I can keep in touch with friends in different parts of the world and I have used my facebook account more then once to swap pictures with relatives. It has helped us become closer, and keeps us all up to date on the different adventures in our lives. It also allows me to learn about different cultures and I am able to travel the world without leaving my room.
There are both positive and negative aspects to this generation being so surrounded by technology, but not everyone is being swept up in the falsehood of it all. Some people do use it for good, and are potraying their real self. I guess it is up to ourselves to sort through it all and decide for ourselves.

Posted By: coolhandjohnny @ 03/29/2008 8:32:00 PM

Comment: as part of the "look at me" generation (born 1984), i can say, yes. we can have trusting and meaningful relationships. things like youtube, which i both watch and am watched on, are just a different way to relate to friends, and also a way to reach people you would NEVER otherwise see. i can go on youtube and in a few minutes get a taste of what it is to be from another country, another ethnicity, another culture. i can go on and see the way others talk, act, and think.
instead of being worried it's gonna make us "hollow," a far more interesting study would be what it's like to be living in an age where to experience italy, all i have to do is go to my computer. not to mention, you can ask people questions to learn more about them and they answer you in video. you get all the things you get from actual "real life" interaction but without actually siting in the same room. gestures, tones of voice, it's all there on your computer screen. do a study on the effects of THAT! now that's fascinating. which i suppose is why we do it.

Posted By: beekss @ 03/26/2008 1:23:56 AM

Comment: I'm writing a thesis paper and making paintings based on this topic at the moment, and found this article interesting. Addressing mastery is something that everyone must go through at some point in their life, but I think that the addition of life online has made this much more complicated for children today. The internet and camera's only give the subject the illusion of mastery over their projected image, but once that image is out of their hands and on the web, or television, the interpretations of those images, depending on the context, are entirely in the hands of the audience.

Posted By: Scribblermom @ 03/24/2008 9:36:12 AM

Comment: I was glad to see this article. The only ACTUAL reality TV was Candid Camera, umpteen years ago. Any time you put a camera on someone and they know it, their behavior changes. There are have been studies done on it. I avoid "reality" TV like the plague because I hate seeing REALLY bad acting - and that's all you see on "reality" TV. / I have a 16 year old daughter and I she doesn't have a computer, cell phone, My Space page, or anything else high tech. And guess what? She is just fine. She has friends, does well in school, and is a happy kid. It's ridiculous to complain about kids being too over-exposed - the parents should simply monitor their kids better, and not let them grow up so fast.
Dee Thompson
http://deescribbler.typepad.com/flick_pages/

Posted By: Kpan @ 03/24/2008 4:19:18 AM

Comment: This article, while provocative and certainly entertaining, does not look at a representative sample of the post-1982 population. By only using examples of people who are highly exposed, this article focuses on a small but highly visible segment of the population who do use technology to further their own image while ignoring the majority of people who quietly use online social networks for recreation and to connect with friends. Every generation has their share of exhibitionists and to generalize their actions to the entire generation is unfair and misleading.

Posted By: John Luma @ 03/23/2008 8:42:37 PM

Comment: As a Boomer, I have to point out the final generational point made that's ridiculously inaccurate: "One thing you can say for the Look at Me's is that they won't suffer the collective amnesia of their boomer elders, who often boast about being too stoned during their youth to remember it." I lived many places in the '60s and '70s, and the vast majority of Boomers I saw, 75% I'd say, rarely or never got stoned. But I guess it makes more compelling story-telling for journalism to weave a cultural memory that might be colorful, but just not true. Instead of making the grand statements, why don't journalists just add the more accurate adjective, "some..." ?

Posted By: s.carolina.14 @ 03/23/2008 3:03:19 PM

Comment: I had posted earlier about this article in agreeance to what it said. I'm reading the comments now, and I'd just like to say, maybe there is hope. There are actually quite a bit of people that are writing in agreeance to the fact that our generation is pretty screwed up. But considering there are people who see this fact, including in my generation [Look at Me] then maybe we're not so screwed...thanks.

Posted By: katkitkat @ 03/23/2008 5:08:21 AM

Comment: I am an adult. I have one daughter, three nieces, and one nephew in the pre-teen and teen generation. Its enhanced communication, its no different than when the internet first came out, or phones. Really, I cannot help but laugh at the author of this? If you were my Grandmother's age, you would have been one of the people who got upset at the invention of the answering machine. Get a life and a personality of your own. Myspace is for connections and communication, you left off livejournal by the way.

Posted By: matthigham @ 03/23/2008 2:58:06 AM

Comment: Yes, due to expanding communication techonlogy teens are documented more now than they were in the past. That much is clear. However, the author errs in assuming that mass media exposure had the same implications about fame that it does today. For example, there was a time when a man would be eseemed like a celibrity if his picture appeared in the newspaper. These days, he would need to make prime time for a full week before he could even be up for consideration. So it isn't that American teenagers began to formed narcissistic delusions of fame once their photos became accesible on the internet. Let's give them credit: Most teenagers are fully aware of what counts as famous (i.e., "part of general knowledge") and what does not ("an image on a seldom-viewed website"). In short, what made for "famous" in 1950 ("my family has two cars") is not the same thing that makes for "famous" today.("I own several jumbo jets and a major search engine"). n addition, if everyone in this new generation is being documented, we will simply end up with "document inflation"--i.e., that a superfluity of documents renders each document less valuable as a fame-maker. Ask one of those teens if I'm right and she might say: "Yeah, like who would think they had become a celeb just because of a few pictures on a stupid MySpace page?"

Posted By: ochensati @ 03/23/2008 2:33:48 AM

Comment: There is no such thing, and never has been of being authentic in public. We all play roles and always have. Those that are good at playing roles have always been successful. Those who were not so good were nerds. The camera just allows you to record it later. Commentators are always trying to make the point that things have changed, but without some change in our DNA, human nature has been, is and will always be the same.

Our parents play acted roles, we play act roles, and we all try to avoid looking strange and stupid in front of our friends

Posted By: jimmyc08 @ 03/23/2008 1:50:21 AM

Comment: We do not wish to be documented. Television stations and the general public classify teens as 'aliens,' so that automatically puts us under the microscope. T.V. stations and their producers think that they can make great t.v. but broadcasting our personal issues and problems.

Myspace and other sites of the like are not a problem, they simply enhance the narcissism that people are born with. There a millions of myspacers and about 1/4th of them are past their mid-20's. So, to say that teens are corrupt , and can't have valuable relationships is completely ignorant.

Posted By: AnotherGuy @ 03/23/2008 1:37:27 AM

Comment: uh-Oh. i understand what you say, yet I wonder. did you write that from your heart or what you want everyone else to read? Good view point though.

Posted By: AnotherGuy @ 03/23/2008 1:37:14 AM

Comment: uh-Oh. i understand what you say, yet I wonder. did you write that from your heart or what you want everyone else to read? Good view point though.

Posted By: DannyT. @ 03/23/2008 12:45:38 AM

Comment: Ebba "Uh-Oh" has missed the point completely.

Posted By: ebba @ 03/23/2008 12:26:44 AM

Comment: Uh oh - I'm being documented.

So each generation has a "thing" about them. What's great about my generation (the look at me gen) is that we are the first generation to grow up so connected, to people halfway across the nation and the world. Aside from those people who make major life mistakes very publicly, I think most people use the public persona to boost their self esteem, to boost and make clear to others who they really are. I have personally learned about interests that my real freinds have, that I actually had no idea about until reading their profiles. Isn't it psycologically sound to be self centered during one's teen years and shortly after? It is when a person is in the mid 20's when they begin to settle into their own "essence", I believe. Teen years are completely different. That's why teenagers are said to be alien. I think it is off base to generalize a whole generation based on the actions of teen and early adulthood years. Beyond the teen years, I believe that the vast majority of the "look at me" generation will be interconnected and understand the importance of a world that works in harmony better than generations before. Yes, there are those of us who are more shallow and end up focusing on problems like run-ins during a party, and then there are those of us who try to not be entirely self centered and focus on ways to better our world and on issues rather than petty problems.
Also, most of us understand the grave danger that global climate change presents us with, and as my generation grows, I believe that we will come together to tackle this crisis. We will each become individual newscasters as we document each and every second.

Posted By: ebba @ 03/23/2008 12:26:07 AM

Comment: Uh oh - I'm being documented.

So each generation has a "thing" about them. What's great about my generation (the look at me gen) is that we are the first generation to grow up so connected, to people halfway across the nation and the world. Aside from those people who make major life mistakes very publicly, I think most people use the public persona to boost their self esteem, to boost and make clear to others who they really are. I have personally learned about interests that my real freinds have, that I actually had no idea about until reading their profiles. Isn't it psycologically sound to be self centered during one's teen years and shortly after? It is when a person is in the mid 20's when they begin to settle into their own "essence", I believe. Teen years are completely different. That's why teenagers are said to be alien. I think it is off base to generalize a whole generation based on the actions of teen and early adulthood years. Beyond the teen years, I believe that the vast majority of the "look at me" generation will be interconnected and understand the importance of a world that works in harmony better than generations before. Yes, there are those of us who are more shallow and end up focusing on problems like run-ins during a party, and then there are those of us who try to not be entirely self centered and focus on ways to better our world and on issues rather than petty problems.
Also, most of us understand the grave danger that global climate change presents us with, and as my generation grows, I believe that we will come together to tackle this crisis. We will each become individual newscasters as we document each and every second.

Posted By: iknow @ 03/22/2008 11:31:39 PM

Comment: I thought this was a very good article. It touches on a topic that can apply to many (not all) people from this post 1982 generation. I think some people who attack this article feel self-concsious because they can see some parts of the article that apply to them, but they don't think other parts apply to them.
I do not beleive that every teen who has a blog, or facebook page or other online social space is void of personal and private relationships and lives. However, I do agree that this new technology has gone beyond making things easier for people to communicate, and in fact promotes the persona craze. I consider myself
a smart individual with fulfilling and real life. But, I have a facebook page and I have realized how much I and many of my friends interact on the site with such fervor. Yes, it is has benefits: reconnecting with family and friends from different cities, countries, continents and sharing memories like weddings and baby showers. But, to what extent are we simply sharing our memories, as opposed to presenting a persona that we want ingrained in the memories of others?
I have tons of pictures on Facebook and I have told myself before that it is for my memories. But that is not logical to me, bc you have to go to an archive (camera, cell phone, etc etc) to transfer the piks to Facebook or my space or blogs. If we are simply trying to keep memories and share with freinds, why not print them out or email them to freinds? And more importantly, if we are not presenting personas, why is it that MOST people can only call like 5-10 people on FB their REAL freinds?? Birthday wishes, random messages, wall posts, and immediate access to profiles make it easy to BELEIVE you have an intimate relationship with people. But in reality, you end up not knowing a lot of people on your 300 plus freind list.
Like I said, I am not trying to generalize. Not everyone from this generation is online. But there is a large enough amount of people who are in essence "living" or "presenting" their lives on these websites. Need proof? Look at people who within five minutes of meeting you say "are you on facebook", or "i am so quoting that on facebook" or " will you tag me in that picture?" And these people are not losers! They are multidimensional, smart people on their way to professional school or the working world.
I am rambling so I will stop. But my point is : I like this article because it speaks the truth. This generation has indeed become to obsessed with "display" living, and the consequences later down the road are going to be pretty bad, socially AND personally.
I hope that all of us using these great tools (including myself) will not get lost in excitement and fail to see dangers ahead and in our face.

Posted By: minty_skittles @ 03/22/2008 10:59:52 PM

Comment: (Continued???)

As for documentation, that???s the point of the article that hits closest to home for me. I have to admit that I have both a website (about myself) and a facebook page, and throughout high school, I even kept up with a daily blog (livejournal, I think). Right now, I live and work in Japan, and I???ve been ???documenting??? my daily life through pictures with the intention of posting and explaining them on facebook. Reading that people my age or younger ???seem to take for granted that their lives are documentary-worthy??? caught me off gaurd. While that may be true, consider two more things. The first thing is the very obvious point of technology. It???s there, and who can say if that???s a positive or a negative. We have internet and cameras and easily printed/distributed other medias. If it had been this easy to put yourself out there two or three generations ago, it would???ve been done. The other thing is a little subtler. If we accept the idea that kids are trying to construct who they are, then wouldn???t self-documentation be an ???I think, therefore I am??? sort of situation? ???I exist; there I am in pictures, in writing, and in the public eye.???

For me, it???s a little of both. Instead of making a VHS home video with my family in the back yard, I take pictures of my life in Japan and post them on the web. Later, when I???m old, I hope to look back and remember little details that would???ve been impossible to remember without documentation of daily life. It???s not so much to discover, build up, or publicize who I am so much as it is to capture who I am *now*--just something to measure myself with when I???m older. My grandmother has letters, my mom has VHS, and I have my facebook account. :)

Posted By: minty_skittles @ 03/22/2008 10:59:07 PM

Comment: Greetings! Quick intro: My name is Rachel, and I???m a 25-year-old Kentuckian (born in December of 1982) who now works as an English teacher in Japan.

For most of my college career (six years), I worked in the campus residence halls. I was surprised and saddened to see that each new wave of freshmen became more reckless and self-centered year after year. In fact, the gap between the people I knew and worked with (who were just three or four years older than the incoming freshmen) and the first year students seemed un-bridgeable. Time and time again, I wondered how I could ever possibly help kids who had issues so drastically different than my own??? Eventually, I came to realize (and this was of great help to me at the time) that my problems were and are very much the same! There was, of course, one gaping difference: the level of problem publicity. My problems were private, but theirs were on display. I needn???t have been a resident assistant to know what was going on. All that is to say that this generation is no different from our parents??? or grandparents???. The difference is publicity (which was pointed out several times in the article above).

On the issue of personas, it is less a new phenomenon than an extreme. The generations before this had strict roles to adhere to (or deviate from). The expectations were, for the most part, clear-cut for any given individual (and arguably for the whole generation). Now, people just younger than me are lacking the expectations, role models, and pre-formed life plans that earlier generations have had. Of course, that's not necessarily a bad thing; it's freedom for the child to become whatever they like. However, with no guidance at all, there???s a simultaneous information void and information overload that inevitably leaves kids reaching for some sort of standard to conform to. It???s easy, then, to see why they create a public persona, choosing for themselves the TV, internet, magazine persona that they can best imitate. Those personas then use each other as sounding boards to solidify themselves (at which point, the personas become what they truly believe they are). Again, that???s nothing new. We can see that in any sort of group growing up age after age. Here, the only difference is the ability to broadcast information through self-documentation by way of internet, writing, pictures, etc.

(To be continued...)

Posted By: Arouet @ 03/22/2008 10:50:47 PM

Comment: I find it depressing that the clueless adults working for Newsweek (not that Newsweek has a monopoly on this kind of thing; it's quite common in the media) feel the need to make gigantic, sweeping, ill-informed diagnoses of what's wrong with "today's teens" when there are so many actual problems in the world that are worth reporting. Sigh.

Posted By: nothinbutmetal @ 03/22/2008 10:01:21 PM

Comment: (...cont) all this at a time, when to solve our most looming problem in the history of our species (the one al gore and others are desperately trying to concern us with...), we will have to be as SELFLESS as individuals as we have ever managed to be. it seems like it's not going to be possible. modern narcissism has so many faces, we are, i'd say, doomed.

Posted By: nothinbutmetal @ 03/22/2008 9:56:27 PM

Comment: whether you're "look at me" gen or not, it seems we have never been more selfish, self centred, even self obsessed, individually, as we are right now. so many things contribute to this, things that essentially tap into our weakest and most susceptible human desires. gucci adverts, reality tv, facebook narcissism, celebrity scrutiny, all act as distractions or temptations from perhaps more wholesome or healthy forms of expression

Posted By: nothinbutmetal @ 03/22/2008 9:50:07 PM

Comment: ww

Posted By: nothinbutmetal @ 03/22/2008 9:42:54 PM

Comment: whether you're "look at me" gen or not, it seems we have never been more selfish, self-centred, even self obsessed, individually, as we are right now. so many things contribute to this, things that essentially tap into our weakest and most susceptible human desires. gucci adverts, reality tv, facebook narcissism, paris hilton, all act as distractions or temptations from perhaps more wholesome or healthy forms of expression. or or

Posted By: Heart_Shaped_Glasses2010 @ 03/22/2008 9:05:36 PM

Comment: I'm 16, so I guess I fit into this "look at me" generation, but I'm not like that at all..I'd probably find it weird if a camera that would broadcast my life was following me around..maybe it's because I'm from a small midwestern town, I don't know, but I know tons of people that are real and perfectly capable of forming real, strong relationships.

Posted By: annie007 @ 03/22/2008 8:12:26 PM

Comment: Boys, behave like men and you will gain the respect of your friends and loved ones. There is nothing hotter to a girl than a guy who is NOT confused about his role. There is no reason that you can't open a car door. It is not expected, but it will leave one heck of an impression on your lady friend. Take out the trash without your parent asking, they will definately notice and appreciate it. Little steps to showing that you are ready to be treated like an adult will get you there so much faster than pounding your fists and throwing a temper tantrum. Get up and clean your room. Basically, anything that you would have to do for yourself if you were living alone. Do your own laundry. Wash your dishes. Doing these things will give you a sense of control over your own situation. Plus when your ready to move out you won't be stuck with pink t-shirts because you already know not to put red in with anything else.

Posted By: sweetredarcher @ 03/22/2008 7:59:48 PM

Comment: Well I myself am a GEN X'er and well they said WE were a LOKK at me gen as well. All I have to say is I have myspace and bebo for the pure fact my children have them to keep an eye on them and well their friends as well...I don't blog but I have on my msn spaces page but if I just want to vent or to really just document my day thats what a journal is for. If the youth of today and the future want to have some semblance of privacy then I urge them DON'T make your personal life public. If you feel the need to grip about the current status of OUR country and the world fine but do we really need to know you hooked up w/5 ppl over the weekend and did massive partying? No not really and then you wonder why people look at you weirdly and whisper about you. Lets get some sort of couth and reserve we had in my day (and I'm only 37) sounds crazy but we need a major selfcheck

Posted By: lareina77 @ 03/22/2008 7:45:05 PM

Comment: To the previous post: Well said!!!! Girls nowadays seem over-the-top trifling. No offense.

Posted By: annie007 @ 03/22/2008 7:40:20 PM

Comment: Listen up teenage girls: Someday you are going to want a man, not a little boy. When that day comes... I truly hope you have not diminished yourself to the point of being loved by the sickos. A good man looks for a woman with SELF respect. The girlies now days have none! There is a difference between self respect and exhibitionism. You may think stripping at a party is fun now, but you will never have a balanced relationship because you will always attract a lesser sort of man. It has taken me 30 years to learn this save yourselves 15 years of bad relationships and BE a better kind of female. BE A LADY! You will find that your whole life improves, not just your relationship with boys/men. Thanks for reading and I really hope that someone listens.

Posted By: DreamsSetToMusic @ 03/22/2008 7:12:57 PM

Comment: Oh, wow. I really didn't think my generation was that out of control. It's strange considering that everyone else I know has the obsession this article depicts, that I don't. It's interesting to see the story from the side of an adult. Everyone is so into the Myspace, Facebook, and YouTube thing that I feel as if I somehow missed some key gene or experience.

Posted By: bmxsith @ 03/22/2008 7:10:44 PM

Comment: this is a stupid topic. but it did it's job and got us all posting. there's this old saying out there. i think it goes something like this " kids will be kids". i think it is safe to say that the day comes in most everybody's life that we think to ourselves "man, I've got to get together" and you do. the point i'm trying to make, is the kids today will step up and get it done just like they're supposed to. every single one of us was looked down on by an older generation just for being young and trying to find a direction.
'

Posted By: mandy.solomon @ 03/22/2008 7:03:18 PM

Comment: amazing article! kids are getting worse and worse everyday, and no one wants to take responsibility for it, let alone themselves. kids to open their eyes wider and see what theyre doing, and how its effecting them, and the people in their lives. rememeber that little saying from back in the day.."sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me!" well they do...and this generation needs to learn to deal with their negative situations head first, rather than running out and telling the world that suzy is a slut, or that jimmy does steroriods. keep these kinds of articles coming. who knows, it might change one young persons mind...

Posted By: mandy.solomon @ 03/22/2008 7:02:23 PM

Comment: amazing article! kids are getting worse and worse everyday, and no one wants to take responsibility for it, let alone themselves. kids to open their eyes wider and see what theyre doing, and how its effecting them, and the people in their lives. rememeber that little saying from back in the day.."sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me!" well they do...and this generation needs to learn to deal with their negative situations head first, rather than running out and telling the world that suzy is a slut, or that jimmy does steroriods. keep these kinds of articles coming. who knows, it might change one young persons mind...

Posted By: mishkas_parady @ 03/22/2008 6:56:34 PM

Comment: At nineteen, I'm right in the thick of the "look at me" generatin. I think there are alot of things to attribute to a need to be seen. We live in a huge, high paced world where its very easy to feel insignificant and you couple that with crumbling family support and you have a bunch of kids looking for reassurance that they'r important. As much as i criticize reality shows and think most of them (like laguna beach) make people my age look shallow and one dimentional, i am guilty of wondering what it would be like to be on a show like that, what i would do, what i could say, how i could express myself, etc. In the end, i think this will just be a generational phase and 15 years from now we'll have some amazing books written about the pschycology of growing up in this day in age.

Posted By: mishkas_parady @ 03/22/2008 6:44:37 PM

Comment: Being as i am, myself, a part of this "look at me generation" I'd have to agree. People see it as wanting attention but its more about just wanting reassurance, and just wanting to feel signifcant in this fast paced world. Despite my constant critizism of reality TV shows, I'm guitly of watching and even worse, guilty of thinking about being on one. Although these shows make my generation look shallow, vaine, and cliche, depite what the older people might think, we do have essence and hopefully this is nothing more than generational phase.

Posted By: jriz08 @ 03/22/2008 6:29:37 PM

Comment: Thanks 'whatthehell?' for your post. But blaming the largest generation ever (the baby boomers) for being born is not there fault. World War II ending wasn't their fault either. Maybe you should blame Germany or maybe Japan. But you will notice that these people are working longer than the generation previous. Also if you have ever taken a 1st year college ecomomics class, you would realize that recessions are part of the economic cycle. I think over history there has been more than 10. Also I don't think "older people" have so much time on their hands that they want to rant and rave about younger folks. The true nature of this article shows that very little attention has been paid to this 'younger' generation. I do believe that every generation is different that the one before it. In some ways better and other worse. But that depends on who you ask.

Posted By: dannyjames8 @ 03/22/2008 6:18:43 PM

Comment: as long as capitalism is our economy; the way we make a living, and socialism and communism are ideals that we extricate, self promoting will always be an issue, and a value. as technology advances so will our ability to promote. its not one generation or another generation. its just the world we live in and the way we have shaped it along the way
all anybody can expect for anybody else is their pursuit of happiness.

Posted By: Whatthehell? @ 03/22/2008 5:58:01 PM

Comment: I like moonbeam's take on this. It's sad when the older generations seem to have more time on their hands to rant and rave at us younger folks, yet don't have a clue as on how to fix our society's bigger problems. I don't know if anyone else is paying attention but we're REAL close to a recession, China's becoming the new Russia (Cold War redux?), no one wants to buy American products (twice as expensive and half the quality), education is behind most of the developed world, and we're expected to help support you older folks with Social Security when you leave us with nothing? Yeah, thanks. All I see right now is a government fighting amongst themselves (getting nothing accomplished), trying one-upmanship within parties in a mad race for power, and media focusing on scandal after scandal drawing attention (from the voters mind you) from the issues that need to be addressed! WAKE UP PEOPLE! Lead by example older folks and start earning your social security checks and worry less about us younger folks! I guarantee you that the younger crowd will come about....

Posted By: njk923 @ 03/22/2008 5:31:51 PM

Comment: The label 'Look at Me Generation' suits perfectly, because it says more about the society than it does the children. In our society, family units have been slowly melting away and children have had to find other ways to fulfill their attachment needs. It just so happens that peer relationships have become exponentially more important and accessible through technology. Children retreat into the world of technological advancement because it satisfies a need for them. Children only stay the same in their need for relationship, and every generation the means of attaining such a relationship change. If there is one thing this generation should show us it is that we are too blind to see what is going on. Every act serves a function. What is the function behind these childrens' needs? It is plain to see if we only slow ourselves down to see it.

Posted By: coryfrye @ 03/22/2008 4:52:52 PM

Comment: Whenever I find myself ranting about the "Look at Me generation," it occurs to me that had this technology existed when I was a mall-wanderin' spurt, oooooohhh, man, I can only imagine the cool variety of embarrassing videos we'd have to choose from now. 'Member that party in '89 when Sarah--oh, just visit www.toxicnostalgia.com, but don't cc: her kids.

Technology changes. Teenagers from generation to generation, not so much.

Posted By: tommyrichard @ 03/22/2008 4:28:31 PM

Comment: if you send a pic of yourself topless to a guy; u have to face the fact that after u break up or even while u are still together he may place it on the internet- boo hoo!!! stuff like that happens I copied the above from a 14 year old on comment of 03/22. She may not be aware of it but she spoke words of eternal significance. We are all in a "Look At Me" generation. "All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." Hebrews 4:13 And: "For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad." We ought not to name ourselves as to generations. We are all the same. We all want to take pride in our generation as though we are somehow different. We aren't. It is as though we are each in our own separate world. As though we are the sun and all things revolve around us. And it is so each in our own world. The question is: How are we treating the world in which we live? We are responsible for every decision we make and every word we speak. Responsible to the God who has given us this our private world in which to live. We ought to seek to please that won who gave us this world......

Posted By: Sono81 @ 03/22/2008 4:16:57 PM

Comment: My

Posted By: Sono81 @ 03/22/2008 4:14:38 PM

Comment: im 26. Both of our parents work from 8am to 6pm. we wake up at 6 or 5 and return home after school, practice, work, whatever at 8pm. on saturday or sunday our parents are too busy tieing up the loose ends of the week to catch up with us. If the lenses of our parents eyes are not fixed on us, we will just have to find some lenses that are. Our eyes are fixated on Media, young, people like us who have way too much money, we wanna know what thats like too. If our parents dont tell us what its like. We will try to experience it the best way we can. Its just like that girl said, if you send a naked picture to your boyfriend and you break up with him then you should expect to pay for your consiquences FORVER. How do I know this, cuz I came up with it myself. My parents were too busy to tell me any different, my mom divorced my father, I know that if my wife doesnt shape up ill leave her too! That I DID learn from my parents....

Posted By: sscarpenter @ 03/22/2008 3:42:46 PM

Comment: It is terribly sad that the appearance of achievement has become more appealing to most young people, than actual achievement. The fame game creating an entire society of people who prefer second hand reality to actual life. The last commentator seems correct in his/her assertions that this image conscious reality is yet another form of smoke screen except that instead of "divide and conquer" we get "distract and conquer". My how idiotic we have become as a culture.

Posted By: teen_thinker11 @ 03/22/2008 3:24:51 PM

Comment: i am a 14 year old girl and i understand what this article is saying. nothing can be done about all this because teenagers have to make decisions for themselves. we're learning to make choices and the results that come with these choices. the only difference between today and the previous centuries is that parents have a little less control over us now. if a parent stops their teen from joining facebook because they dislike the fact that their kids will post pics and videos and because of all the dangers, etc. etc. this will cause the teen to feel left out and angry; at least i would. my parents dont like certain things about facebook and other such websites but they trust me not to abuse it. one of my friends was tagged in an embarassing picture of her gyrating on a boy.
but just because that happened to her that does not mean the internet is evil!!! in general the teens who get badtalked and gossiped about on the internet are usually people who CHOSE to broadcast themselves or who PLACE thmselves in embarassing situations (generally not alway)
face it thing s are changing. whn people make mistakes they learn from it. if you send a pic of yourself topless to a guy; u have to face the fact that after u break up or even while u are still together he may place it on the internet- boo hoo!!! stuff like that happens.

Posted By: jdemo02 @ 03/22/2008 3:22:14 PM

Comment: Juicy Campus was designed for satanic work, but.............In order to form intimate relationships, they will need to trust each other, and not view friendships and romances???not to mention guarding prisoners???as one more arena for MySpace-worthy performances. <---this article sounds devilish too

Posted By: FreePeace @ 03/22/2008 3:04:49 PM

Comment: Supposedly anyone who was a teen in the sixties was a a hippie. Out of all the people I know whom where alive in the sixties, I've met only one person who actually protested the war and did "hippie" things. And the reason we are the "me generation" is because the only people you see, are the ones in the media.Quite frankly, I am sick and tired of being criticized. The media spends so much time trying to figure teens out when no matter who we are, good or bad, there is NOTHING that is going to change it. You can write all the articles you want about it, but things aren't going to change. Do you expect all of us to cancel our myspace accounts, become asexual, and live under a rock for the rest of our lives? (yes that was sarcastic). Look at the bigger picture...The supposed generation of "hippies" have lead us into war, enviromental abuse, corruption, and distrust of everything.

Who we are now never defines who we will be,

and that is that.

Posted By: Puffyredrooster @ 03/22/2008 2:17:28 PM

Comment: This is going to happen and there's nothing you or anyone can do about it. And it's been happening. We are a new generation with new, big toys to play with. Mainly, the internet. It's easy for people to be rude and crule behind a keyboard..And I know this. But my generation will grow up and by that time we'll have rules and laws about what you can and cannot do on the internet. The world is changing. Take a step back. Look at what is truly happening.
By the way, I have to disagree with "AmourPerpetuus" about the girlfriend/ boyfriend thing... It's natural for people to think that the person their dating is "the one" and then break up with them. It's a learning process!! This will ready us for bigger things in life!
Oh and I have a myspace and it's just something fun to have. I post pictures so my friends will see what I've been up to. I blog things so my friends will know how I feel. It's true that I don't have over 10,000 friends. But I have friends that do. And- Oh My God can you believe it- they aren't thinking their going to become famous. Good greif. One day you'll be looking back at this, telling your kids how silly this all was. Well, if you hadn't given yourself a heart attack thinking the world and everyone in it is stuck on themselves.

Posted By: Puffyredrooster @ 03/22/2008 2:17:05 PM

Comment: This is going to happen and there's nothing you or anyone can do about it. And it's been happening. We are a new generation with new, big toys to play with. Mainly, the internet. It's easy for people to be rude and crule behind a keyboard..And I know this. But my generation will grow up and by that time we'll have rules and laws about what you can and cannot do on the internet. The world is changing. Take a step back. Look at what is truly happening.
By the way, I have to disagree with "AmourPerpetuus" about the girlfriend/ boyfriend thing... It's natural for people to think that the person their dating is "the one" and then break up with them. It's a learning process!! This will ready us for bigger things in life!
Oh and I have a myspace and it's just something fun to have. I post pictures so my friends will see what I've been up to. I blog things so my friends will know how I feel. It's true that I don't have over 10,000 friends. But I have friends that do. And- Oh My God can you believe it- they aren't thinking their going to become famous. Good greif. One day you'll be looking back at this, telling your kids how silly this all was. Well, if you hadn't given yourself a heart attack thinking the world and everyone in it is stuck on themselves.

Posted By: habitualdelirium @ 03/22/2008 2:16:02 PM

Comment: Sometimes I feel the "look at me" generation is the result of globalization and world westernization. Look at the screen of all these young people putting on images via a single webpage, and most of them are often shallow lies. What people put on these pages are meant to bring what they see as the best in them, hiding all the truths they don't want to share. Now look at the whole of american culture, while we're all in images of wealth with our happy families, independence, freedom, etc., more and more become impoverish worldwide. A few companies control the whole entire global market. And even looking online, a few webpages control the new generation's communicating networks. You look in media, you look on personal webpages, you look at all those, and you will see constant promoting, and rarely any truths. I mean, I understand when people use it to keep in contact with all their friends, but then the number of friends also becomes a statistical promoting tool on pages. Quality in relationships is dissapearing amongst all this. Cause in all honesty, all of these things may be useful in improving the interconnectness of our world, but they in no way are a signal of quality. I am the result of this "look at me" generation, and I hate it. I've travelled and I've looked at other cultures, and I do not like how egotistical this culture is. It might make a few people happy who are successful at making their single images great. But human culture is meant to work together, and be seen in groups. Myspace, facebook, reality tv, etc. promote egotistical ideals. This increases competition between individuals, and in the long run agression. All this has made us see that we are the masters of our world. That's why capitalism is so strong. Why we use up so many resources, and don't really care. Why a few companies run the global economy. Why coke cans can be found in the most imporverish countries. Our culture is a culture of war. Like as hard as it is to link single webpages to ideas as great as war, learning about people has only made me see everything as linked. Tell me what you think.

Posted By: RSmith545 @ 03/22/2008 1:57:40 PM

Comment: This is a ploy by large corporations, assisted by the media (who they control) and PAC-funded politicians. Reality TV and social networking sites are designed to make the average person think they matter in today's society. Even sports and politics have been co-opted into an "us versus them" mentality, creating the illusion that if your party or your team is a winner, then you are too. This is all being done for the purposes of mis-direction. Keep the masses content with their 15 minutes of fame or their illusory successes and they won't notice that the rules of the game are being changed to the benefit of a select group of powerful elites. They are taking our money and our futures for their own benefit while we amuse ourselves with "American Idol" and posting digital pictures of ourselves.

Posted By: AmourPerpetuus @ 03/22/2008 1:41:13 PM

Comment: As a product of this so called "Look At Me" generation, I must say that I strongly dislike my generation. I fit in so much nicer with people in their early to late 20's and beyond, because they're a more in tune with the real life, and not this "real life" crap the industry is spewing via television internet, etc.

I'll admit, I know people like the kids in that high school. I know a girl who is absolutely "in love" with every boyfriend, and he's "the one", and then when they split up a half a week later she's completely "devestated" for about 3 days until she finds the next guy. And you know what? She broadcasts it to everyone. Every single person she talks to hears about it at least once. She is the reason we're labeled the "Me Generation". I also know kids who think they're going to become famous the second they're legal adults, because they're "just that cool" and they have 10,000 friends on myspace, and they have a video camera so they can post on youtube or whatever. I don't know how that works, but good luck to you when you run smack into the REAL reality. :] These kids are the "myspace whores", and I hope for their own sakes and the sake of the next generation that they grow up, and SOON.

On the other hand, I know people who've never touched myspace, facebook, etc., because they're smart enough to use their brains to see what it does to people. Now, I do have a myspace, but I get on it maybe twice a week, and only when I'm bored with no plans in the immediate future. I use it because there are some friends (that I DO know in real life) that I can't always communicate with on account of our vastly different schedules, so I drop them a comment to see if they want to get together. Now is that so bad? It's not like I write blogs to try and tell everyone everything I'm thinking, and I don't have an account on every other social-networking website. If I wanted someone to know what was going on in my life, I'd just go do something with them, you know? Get out into the world and experience it, instead of just reading about it.

As a random side note, I think that we're (the "Me Generation") damned lucky to have all this technology available to us, if only the majority of us knew how and when to use it.

Posted By: justthinkaboutit @ 03/22/2008 1:29:36 PM

Comment: Everyone should take responsibility for their share of the problem: parents, culture and the teens. Instead of trying to blame other people, we should use this amazing technology to improve how we communicate, use it to comment to people in a real way and be WHO WE ARE whether we're online or offline, use it to build up trust in our relationships, and use this technology to open our eyes to the much bigger problems in this world...violence, hunger, poverty and environmental devastation. The world will not end if a "friend" spreads rumors about you on her MySpace page; there are so many more problems in this world that we can help solve, if only we focus and stop being distracted by stupid things, and finally use our talents and work together. And we also need to realize that there is so much more to life beyond our iPhones and computer screens.....so get out there and LIVE it!!!

Posted By: genxindiana @ 03/22/2008 1:24:02 PM

Comment: Every generation has a group, no matter how large or small, that is stereotyped by articles like this one. The fact remains that there are kids within todays generation who fit this profile no matter what the extreme. I was stereotyped when I was in high school...it happens, missmarissa...get over it. Learn from articles like these but don't internalize the stereotype if you belive it doesn't fit you.

My husband's sister was completely flabergasted that not very many family members would be attending her volleyball tournament the day after our weekend. She was most of all surprised that my husband and I personally would not be making an appearance. Really? The day after our wedding we need to give up seeing people we haven't seen in years to make it out to a volleyball tournament that you have every weekend. It's things like traveling sports teams, reality TV shows that make a kid's life the center of the storyline, and the push to give your children all of your attention that have made this extreme a reality. Years ago, parents were faulted for not giving their kids enough "quality time" and now we've reached the other extreme. There is a happy medium...we just have to swing back the other way a little. And, if one wants to press the issue a little, perhaps this obsession with our kid's life is what has attributed to the rising divorce rate. Parents are so wrapped up in the lives of their offspring that they lose track of each other for 18 years... just a thought.

Posted By: genxindiana @ 03/22/2008 1:22:18 PM

Comment: Every generation has a group, no matter how large or small, that is stereotyped by articles like this one. The fact remains that there are kids within todays generation who fit this profile no matter what the extreme. I was stereotyped when I was in high school...it happens, missmarissa...get over it. Learn from articles like these but don't internalize the stereotype if you belive it doesn't fit you.

My husband's sister was completely flabergasted that not very many family members would be attending her volleyball tournament the day after our weekend. She was most of all surprised that my husband and I personally would not be making an appearance. Really? The day after our wedding we need to give up seeing people we haven't seen in years to make it out to a volleyball tournament that you have every weekend. It's things like traveling sports teams, reality TV shows that make a kid's life the center of the storyline, and the push to give your children all of your attention that have made this extreme a reality. Years ago, parents were faulted for not giving their kids enough "quality time" and now we've reached the other extreme. There is a happy medium...we just have to swing back the other way a little. And, if one wants to press the issue a little, perhaps this obsession with our kid's life is what has attributed to the rising divorce rate. Parents are so wrapped up in the lives of their offspring that they lose track of each other for 18 years... just a thought.

Posted By: SilverHopeGleams @ 03/22/2008 12:59:06 PM

Comment: Read Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.
Scary isn't it? When I read this freshman year it really made me think. I'm 16 so I assume I have a valid perspective on this topic. I don't have a Myspace or Facebook or anything like that. I'm a writer so I frequent Fanfiction and FictionPress; I can't really say I'm the norm I suppose. However I do find it sad that my generation has a tendency to be so material and so catty. I haven't lived through other generations so I can only speak about mine. I do enjoy taking photos simply because I love photography and producing slideshows of an intricate variety. I have friends who can no longer speak to eachother because of a quarrel on MySpace and I have personally been embarrased because my ex-boyfriend posted a picture of me right after I had my wisdom teeth removed (and was numb and swollen) on his Facebook. It really upsets me that people have "the guts" to be horrible online but wouldn't say awful things that they post to your face. When I have a problem with someone I talk to them about it. I don't try to be rude or mean but I let them know they have upset me. Unlike various others I know who claim to be honest but turn around and say things about me to my friends. I also despise MTV. DESPISE. VH1 is also at fault. Those shows are disgusting, vulgar, and all-around awful. There is foul language, sex, and general bad behavior. I do believe that media (as well as parents) has a HUGE impact on the way teens see the world. When did it become okay to get smashed at a party? To have casual sex and get pregnant or smoke every once in a while? Perhaps this may have been rampant in other generations but I find it disgusting and sad. The overwhelming materialism is also disturbing, frankly. I don't have a video game system at home, I have a cell phone out of need (I go to school in a downtown area), an ipod because I have a love of GOOD music (not disgusting pointless rap) and a lot of it (3700+ songs gathered in my 16 years) and my camera is my most precious possession because of my love of photography. I know people who have gone through 3 ipods this year. I thank my parents daily because of my gifts and I freak out if someone puts a fingerprint on them. I think teenagers don't have a sense of appreciation and shows like My Super Sweet 16 astonish me by the brat-level. I'm not "mainstream" I suppose. I know a lot of other teenagers may disaggree, but looking at my generation makes me sad. It gives me a chip on my shoulder because I have a need to prove I'm not a typical teenager. Isn't it terrible I'm ashamed of my peers and ashamed sometimes of myself? That's what needs to be addressed.

Posted By: koolstuff @ 03/22/2008 12:56:14 PM

Comment: If there is a point where the life of a teenager turns around the camera, then it is just American. For some reason, the necessity to leave a footprint in the path of social glamour has become one of the top priorities of American teenagers. It is a fact, whose origins may be traced to individual self-esteem, peer pressure, and poor parental comunication. Also, it might be a consequence of the great attention American teenagers receive from other countries, as of perfection. After all, who helps the poor, the ones in need? American teenagers, mostly. So, if it means getting too much attention, or feeling that everything deserves to be recorded by a camera, it's American.
By the way, I'm an American teenager, and I'm afraid this text was just one of those points of self-posing for an invisible camera, trying to leave my footprint..

Posted By: missmarissa @ 03/22/2008 12:55:50 PM

Comment: i am comletely disgusted with articles like this. for one, i hate the stereotype my generation has developed from these stupid interview/ studies. WE ARE NOT ALL LIKE THIS!!! i have noticed one thing about all of these study/ interviews: they are all for the most part conducted in areas of large populace. this is almost discriminatory in my opinion. conduct one of these at mount pleasant community high school in IOWA, and then we'll talk!

Posted By: NotyourNanny @ 03/22/2008 12:44:28 PM

Comment: "It's hard for me to digest the fact that children are being called self-centered by their own parents." by raazychx
My point exactly. The problem was created by the parents and yet they aren't owning up to their mistakes - and instead blaming it on the children.

Posted By: Numero10 @ 03/22/2008 12:41:27 PM

Comment: The reason why that generation is so messed up is because they have been brought up on an overly-PC litigious society that has coddled them into believing that they are so special and so perfect that they believe the fact that they went to the bathroom this morning is front page worth news. Of course they are so full of themselves and want to document every second of their lives. Many believe that they will become "famous" (or infamous) to a certain degree and are just prepping themselves for the grind of daily interactions with the paparazzi and informing their adoring masses of every single private detail of their ridiculous life. Kids today grow up in a world where not only does every kid make the baseball team but every kid gets MVP because god forbid the child feels a second of disappointment. And if the kid shockingly does not make the team- its the coach's fault! It's the teacher's fault lil' Johnny isn't making A's! It's the school's fault Bessie is acting out and sleeping around! It's the doctor's fault they didn't diagnose the kid with (of course) ADD earlier! It's the drug makers fault that the kid gets depressed and acts manic! Because HEAVENS NO could it ever be that the child is not the smartest, most perfect, most athletic, most incredible individual that has ever walked the face of this earth. No child is average or regular anymore. There is a sense of entitlement to EVERYTHING and an explanation for EVERYTHING. So it is not incredible to me that these kids believe that their lives are fascinating enough to publish in every sense of the word. Modesty and privacy are concepts that are completely lost on this generation and that's pretty sad. By the way, I am in my late 20's so I'm not that far removed from everything. Alas, I am off to watch the NCAA tournament and eat some chips. Just thought you wanted to know of course ;)

Posted By: raazychx @ 03/22/2008 12:39:55 PM

Comment: I'd rather like the idea of praising this new generation instead of, what seems to me, discouraging it.

Unless I'm wrong, most of those who are evaluating this new "Me-Generation" are those of parenthood or the generation before. Who's proper claim to blame, the parents, or the children? The strongest influence on values and the first source of most values both stem from the family. It's hard for me to digest the fact that children are being called self-centered by their own parents.

A little note for those who watch Fox News (I'm not slamming the network here, this could apply to other networks, I'm sure)-- How many times have you seen American Idol brought up, who's going to get voted off? How many times have we seen Youtube videos brought up because "children" and "minors" are doing crimes and pasting them for worlds of others to see? How many times have you been able to text your vote to the polls? Now, here's a different question-- how many teens do you know that have ACCESS to-- T.V., a car, a camera, Facebook, Myspace, a cell phone, a porno site, an illegal drug, et cetera?

I don't know about you, but my opinion is this-- for those who answered the last question with "a few," I strongly suggest they'd look around a little harder.

Zach

Posted By: CatKern @ 03/22/2008 12:31:50 PM