The New Media Frontier

Posted by Kathi on October 30, 2008

I recently read The New Media Frontier: Blogging, Vlogging, and Podcasting for Christ (edited by John Mark Reynolds and Roger Overton, published by Crossway) for a blog tour. GREAT book!

This book is written by a diverse selection of authors, ranging from pastors, apologists, outreach ministers, and people involved in both new and “old” media. I was very pleased to see that Roger Overton was both an editor and contributor- the A-Team blog is a favorite of mine! I must note – several of the chapters are very pleasant to read, almost conversational, and some are fairly academic, with numerous citations and such. I urge the reader to push beyond the style and really dig into the substance of what is being offered.

I found much to agree with in The New Media Frontier, and a bit to disagree with (one author greatly discounted the reality of online community). I ended up taking several broad themes away from the read:

• Christians MUST understand how New Media (NM) impacts society as a whole, in every age and income bracket. Teenagers living in poverty with no computer at home, to elderly widows, to stockbrokers, to stay-at-home moms are accessing and making use of new media.

• We must come to grips about how NM impacts Old Media (traditional print/radio/TV journalism). For example, when Dan Rather claimed certain things during the 2004 election, it took bloggers a matter of hours to figure out the lies. No matter what’s on TV or in the newspaper, the blogosphere will weigh in on it. Currently the media is found wanting. Will that change in the future as “everyman” is able to criticize it?

• Christians must understand that although NM represents a bold new “frontier” and along with it, many opportunities, it also presents some dangers and pitfalls. Some are obvious (it’s much harder to know if someone’s telling the truth online) and some are not. Matthew Lee Anderson of MereOrthodoxy.com cautions (among other things) that “if we routinely place a form between ourselves and the manifold and diverse reality around us, we potentially stultify ourselves by preemptively managing our experience of the world.” Let THAT track around your head a few times and then see what you think.

• I believe in online community – I’ve been a “community” geek for years. I don’t discount its power – but I also know firsthand the limitations of online community. Effective New Media takes these limitations and dangers into account even as it builds community and fosters healthy relationships online.

• Christians are understandably excited about the opportunity to lead people to Christ. I came to Christ via the Internet, and have led God-knows how many others to Him the same way. Yet there are dangers and pitfalls here, too. As I mentioned a moment ago, there is always a concern regarding the truth. I admit it – I’ve been taken in by a contact who said they wanted to know more about Jesus, then gobbled up tons of time. If they’d been serious, every second spent would have been worth it. But they weren’t – they were playing a game. There is also a genuine concern that one who finds Christ online will remain online, never going on to a healthy offline relationship with other Christians. (Hence the rise of “internet churches”. While I don’t discount online community, neither do I encourage it as a replacement for face-to-face contact. Used appropriately, online church is great. Used as a substitute, IMHO it flies in the face of what the Bible tells us we must do.)

• Churches must harness NM and NM talent, and integrate them as seamlessly as possible into the fabric and life of the church. Like it or not, Pastor, your church members use social networks. Intentionally created (and creative!) online community and social networking strengthen established relationships.

• Christians must see how NM applies in the broader scheme of things. John Mark Reynolds wrote in his chapter, “We do not need Christian new media but Christians in new media. That is easy to say but much harder to do. If Christians form a ghetto in communication, then quality and impact will suffer. Christian new media will have the impact of Christian television.” He also, however, argues that total integration would be equally devastating, if all online encounters were to become secular. Christians have a unique opportunity not only to evangelize and to elaborate on Christian life, but also to enter a secular NM site and provide feedback from a Christian worldview.

Again, an excellent book. The New Media Frontier is a must-read for Christians who are already involved in new media (got a blog? Are your sermons podcasted? Do you upload silly videos to YouTube? If so, then that means you!!), whether your content is actually evangelistic in nature or not. It’s also a MUST-read for believers who have not yet entered the world of new media (do you know how many churches lack even a web presence?? It’s astonishing, in this day and age.) Even parents who aren’t interested overmuch in NM should skim through for a better understanding of how to manage their teenager’s access to the world, literally at their fingertips.