Tech Critic Nicholas Carr On Why Social Media Hurts More Than It Helps

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4.4 • 4.3K Ratings

🗓️ 28 January 2025

⏱️ 35 minutes

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Summary

Humans love to connect. We're social like that. Whether we're sending telegrams, calling each other on the telephone, or DM'ing each other on the social media platform of our choosing, we're interacting.

Whether or not that constant connection is a good thing is another matter entirely. Writer and author Nicholas Carr spends a lot of time thinking about that very question (and others like it). His new book, "Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart," tells a story of the parallel rises of mechanical, efficient electronic communication and mass confusion.

But it's not just the fault of tech giants and social media companies. Carr encourages us to look inward and consider how our own psyches play a role. He joins us to talk about the realities of social media and constant connection.

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0:00.0	Okay, so does this sound like you?
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0:12.8	If all that sounds appealing, then it is time to sign up for the NPR Plus bundle.
0:18.7	Learn more at plus.npr.org.
0:26.6	Think about how your social media use has changed over the years. Do you find yourself arguing with strangers more often than
0:39.3	connecting with old friends? In his new book, Superbloom, how technologies of connection tear us
0:45.1	apart, writer Nicholas Carr argues that despite being more connected than ever, social media
0:50.6	and technology is actually keeping us apart, distorting our sense of self and our relationships.
0:56.1	We asked you how your social media use has evolved. Here's what Wendy and Washington left in our inbox.
1:02.5	I gave Facebook a shot during COVID and found it useful during that time when we couldn't be in front of each other.
1:14.0	But I've since just completely lost interest in it.
1:19.7	And the friends that I made using that were very short-lived.
1:28.6	And I find that any time I spend there takes away from time from being in the world and being exposed to the people who just end up by fate in front of me. And it's a much wider, more diverse group of people. And I feel like I learn
1:34.4	more and I expand more. And I get to use all my senses of being a human instead of just my eyes.
1:41.4	So how has social media changed the way we communicate? We get into it after the break.
1:46.0	I'm Nyla Boodoo, in for Jen White.
1:47.7	You're listening to the 1A podcast where we get to the heart of the story.
1:51.3	Back with more in a moment.
1:56.6	This message comes from Monday.com.
1:59.2	Work management platforms.
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