How Social Media Can Give the Silent Generation a Voice

Sometimes the people least likely to engage with Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or Zoom are the
people who can benefit from it the most.

The “Silent Generation,” or those born between 1928 and 1945, aren’t usually mentioned
alongside the likes of Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram unless someone’s talking about these people not
using the platforms or is discussing viral misinformation. A Pew Research Center study this year said that
45 percent of people over 65 use social media sites. Yet, for the majority of seniors, it is more about
gathering information than sharing things about themselves. For example, AARP has pointed out that
Facebook's largest function for older folks has been helping them keep in touch with their families,
especially their grandchildren. But this doesn’t really reflect the digital connectivity many elders are
experiencing.

BJ, a friend who just turned 80, does not own a computer, yet he's one of the 4 out of 10 seniors
with a smartphone, which never leaves his side. For him social media is purely social—no grandkids, just
people from every stage of his eight decades. It has kept him youthful and connected. He has figured out
how to make Facebook and Instagram work for him by asking his younger friends for help when he gets
stuck.

Speaking of assistance, tech help is readily available for any senior looking to explore social media
without relying on younger friends or family members. For example, the library in East Hampton, New
York has a program, much like other libraries, called “Teen Tech Time,” where for two hours on
Saturdays (by appointment) teens assist adults with tech issues and the internet. Volunteer Kimberly
Bermeo, 15, says, “as Gen Z grows up, we have learned to become masters and leaders in the tech
world. By providing assistance to those struggling with technology and the number of growing platforms
on the internet, we unite the community.” Kyle Fichtner, one of the young adult librarians who runs the
program, says many older adults fear exposure of their personal information and don't readily post their
activities on social media. They need a little help navigating those services and using them safely.

BJ, on the other hand, readily posts about life as he experiences it and loves the feedback social
media provides. A perfect example of this was when he and his son visited me to celebrate his 80th in
July. Since none of his friends lived nearby, there wouldn’t be a party. Yet this did not prevent him from
commemorating his 80th birthday with hundreds of pals and a few relatives scattered across the globe.

He asked a friend from a social group he had joined decades before to arrange a Zoom roast for
his last night at 79. The event was less of a roast and more of a tribute, and it created a party
atmosphere. It left him feeling good about himself and ready to take the leap into a new decade. Plus his
son and I learned new things about him.

Jesse Epstein, who attended the roast, has been teaching at the college level for 44 years.
Currently on the faculty of Touro College Graduate School of Technology, he was founding chair of the
Masters of Art Program of Web and Media Design. He moved to Costa Rica with his wife and young child
four years ago when he was 70.

“I wouldn’t be able to live the life I now lead without the assistance of Zoom, Google Classroom,
WhatsApp, and Microsoft Teams,” Epstein tells me on the phone, speaking from his home in Tamarindo.
“My current students are all masters-level school teachers, seeking an additional masters in Instructional
Technology. I use Zoom to observe and evaluate how well they incorporate these technologies into their
lessons live in the classroom. I was surprised by how much more attentive students seemed to be online
than they typically were in the classroom receiving the same material.”

He keeps in touch in a very real way with friends he’s known for decades. “Networking
technologies have supported all my life choices and helped me and my family achieve a level of freedom
and independence I didn’t think was possible for someone in their mid-seventies,” he adds. “I’ve met
other semiretired and retired people who are also thriving for the same reasons.”

On the morning of BJ's birthday, his son put candles with an eight and zero in his omelet, a gold
paper crown next to his napkin, and a happy birthday streamer wrapped around the umbrella pole in
the wooden table on the deck. We knew BJ would like the fuss and, sure enough, he did and posted
pictures of his breakfast to his Facebook page. A former triathlete, he even asked me to record a video
of him on his iPhone when he went swimming in the bay. Like a ridiculous parody of a sports
broadcaster, I added commentary, while his son jumped into the water and joined the action. Of course
that also wound up on Facebook, as did the game of Petanque he played with his son in my driveway,
and dinner at a lovely restaurant I’d booked a reservation for over a month before his birthday.

Upon arrival, I whispered a request to the hostess for a candle in his desert. She nodded. The
eatery was packed, and the only issue with our meal was when the waiter came to clear our dinner
plates. They had run out of desert. However, my friend was a happy man. He had hundreds of likes from
people he knew and couldn’t be with in person, making this his biggest birthday party yet.

Though thousands of people use social media as their individual performance platform, there are
institutions that bring senior storytelling to the public on a larger scale. Franklin Furnace was founded in
1976 by director Martha Wilson as an archive for artists’ books and variable media. The downtown New
York avant-garde institution was the launching pad for innovative performance artists like Laurie
Anderson and Eric Bogosian, who eventually became part of the larger cultural lexicon.

Harley Spiller, the current director, tells me that “Because Franklin Furnace now has an online
presenting platform, we have been able to maintain our media-savvy traditional audience, attract
newcomers of all ages, and—what’s most rewarding—bring many aficionados back into the fold. Many
senior artists left NYC after retiring from their practice. Their hard-won and deep perspective has been a
boon to our public digital Q&A sessions directly after performances. We believe that social media has
made our community more whole than ever before.”

He shared some text from a recent grant he wrote. “Most of the main contributors to the birth of
20th-century performance are now septua- and octogenarians, so time is of the essence to honor and
accurately preserve their work … We [Franklin Furnace] aim to extend our mutual histories by exploring
artists’ work and new ideas, past and present. It is essential to engage in dialogue, reflection, and critical
thinking representing multiple cross-generational intersections.” Social media, Spiller says, is integral to
achieving this goal.

Source: Yassky (2021)

https://www.wired.com/story/social-media-silent-generation/amp

1. What media is important or instrumental during the event?

-The media important or instrumental during the event are different social media platforms such as
Facebook, Messenger Instagram and Zoom.

2. Why do you think the identified media was instrumental or very important in this event?

-Social media platforms were became the medium for Silent Generation to connect with their
grandchildren and platform to celebrate different occasions.

3. Was the outcome a positive or a negative change? Explain your answer.

- The outcome is a positive change. In this time of pandemic where isolation is a must, especially in the
elderly it became a huge help to connect with them and so they won't miss special celebrations.