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March 22, 2005
iPod isolation
Tragic. That's what we are, us users of the iPod ... at least, according to the principal of Sydney's International Grammar School, Kerrie Murphy, who has just banned her students from using them during school hours.
Ms Murphy's concern is that people who wander around with those white earphones stuck in their heads are "avoding communication with others", which may lead to "social isolation or escape from our community".
Now we're not entirely sure that escaping from our community is necessarily a bad thing, but we're prepared to acknowledge that maybe students need to be protected from themselves, when, according to international debate quoted by Ms Murphy, "people were not tuning into other people because they're tuned into themselves".
She's also worried that students using iPods could not hear teachers, that the iPods put stress on ears when played at high volumes and were a security risk. All of which seem like valid points.
On the other hand, we tend to agree with the students, having seen so many of them using them on trams. Most seem to share them with another student, one ear-plug each, so possibly they're not as isolating as the principal thinks.
What's your view? Maybe kids who listen to iPods are less likely to get themselves into even more dangerous types of hot water? Maybe the school could even think about podcasting to the students? Or maybe the principal is right, and someone should take our iPods away from us. We'd like to see someone try.
Posted by cw at March 22, 2005 01:30 PM
Comments
Are you championing the right of today's generation to go deaf or their right to get their ideas from processed, franchised music?
Posted by: Anonymous at March 24, 2005 09:56 AM
I don't know if I'm championing anything, as a matter of fact.
I'm probably in favour of the right of parents to decide whether they should buy their kids an iPod, and whether they should let them take them to school.
I'm not aware that there IS anything other than processed music, most of it franchised, and any debate on that is surely quite independent of any debate on the iPod.
I think letting kids listen to an iPod is probably less potentially mind-rotting than letting them listen to commercial radio.
Posted by: cw at March 24, 2005 12:22 PM
Aaah yes, but then commercial radio gets on their iPods!!!!!
"Austereo sows seeds for podcasts
By Paul McIntyre
March 24, 2005
On Tuesday the radio broadcaster went public with its podcasting service, offering its website visitors 20 to 25-minute "best of" content packages that can be downloaded once a week for listening on digital audio players.
...
Austereo planned to "seed" the market with the idea that radio podcasts were another listening option for portable media players.
Triple J began podcasting some of its shows earlier this year and other stations are looking at similar ideas."
Posted by: tofu at March 24, 2005 06:53 PM