Drew's second blog post

OLD vs. NEW media

I decided to interview my grandfather for this assignment because I have always been curious about his thoughts on new media. My grandfather is 89 years old, from Cape May, New Jersey. At 89, it is safe to say that he has been around the block. I am close with my grandfather, but I never really asked him about his thoughts on media until today and was surprised at some of the answers.

Left to Right: Ann Marie (my sister), Charles Camp (my grandfather), me 

Q: What forms of media did you use when you were a kid?

A: When I was young, the most popular forms of news were newspapers and the radio. I grew up in a poorer part of Cape May, so we did not really have much and we were working too much to really care about national news, but I could go to the store at the corner near the house and pick up a newspaper and my dad would read it on weekends. Now, when I got a little older i would listen to the radio. I mainly listened because I wanted to know how the Phillies (MLB Baseball team) were doing. We could pick up the game broadcast coming out of Philadelphia and we would listen to the games throughout the summertime. You know, it was funny last summer I had a fight with Cox and didn’t have tv at the house and I would listen to the  Phillies games on the radio and it reminded me of when I was a kid and I rather enjoyed it. 

Not my grandfather, but this is probably what he looked like listening to the radio

Q: When did things really begin to change for you when it comes to media?

A: We were always behind the curve when it came to getting new technology, but I didn’t mind you know. But, we got a TV and man that was neat. There wasn’t all of the channels that we have now though, just the big three and they would turn off after a certain time, I cannot remember when I think I was around 8 or 9 o’clock I think. Over time tv changed and I remember color tv was a big deal your dad and aunt begged me for a color tv.

Q: What are the biggest changes in media that have happened in your lifetime?

A: I think the biggest would have to be the internet. That has been a tremendous change and it has not been around for that long, but things change and upgrade so quickly now. Another change I think for me would be the switch from radio to TV. Unless you are in the car I don’t think you listen to radio much at all don’t you? (I answered “yes”.) It seems like newspapers are starting to go away now too. I still get my paper, but I keep seeing advertisements that say I should visit their website for more stories, but I don’t really like to do that.

Q: Do you use modern media? Like the internet, or social media?

A: Yes! Boy I love using google. I got that little computer you guys bought me a while back and its quick let me tell you. I can use it to check on the Phillies when they have a west coast game because I can’t stay up late enough to watch it. So, in the mornings I just type in “Phillies score” and it tells me right away. I also like checking on you and your cousins through Facebook. Aaron (my cousin) set me up with a page and I go on it from time to time to see what you all got going on. I love how I can look at pictures, I used to not be able to see pictures of you guys until you visited me but now I can see them and it makes me feel closer to you guys.

After Thoughts:

The biggest thing that stood out to me through this interview was how my grandfather values media today. He admitted that he was never up to date with the technology of the times, and he was not bothered by that. I know that I always want to be on the cutting edge when it comes to new technology today and cannot imagine what it was like being the last house on the street that had a TV. I also found it interesting that he saw technology today as a privilege but not a necessity. He told me the story about how he didn’t have tv for 8 months last year and he did not mind it, he was happy listening to sport and news on the radio. I was also surprised at his relationship with social media and the internet. I always think of elderly people as being angrily against the internet, but he was all about it. Once my cousin showed him the basic functions of Facebook and google, he uses those tools almost daily to keep in touch with the family and find out information quickly. He is not interested in learning more about all of the functions of the internet and Facebook, but he is happy with the basics. This goes to show that everyone uses social media differently. I feel like I need to constantly be on it, taking in information as fast as possible, but other people just want to look at their grandchildren and great grandchildren at the park on a Sunday.