Editor’s Note: Today’s article is one of two guest articles this week. It has been written up by Sharon Hoyt.
Though Americans like to think they lead the way in technological innovation, they have to hand this one to the French. “Wifipicning” was invented by Parisians in 2005. The original article is in French, but the next three paragraphs will sum up the main points in English.
Thank the French
What is “Wifipicning”? The term is a contraction of Wifi, picnic, and “happening”. Basically, it’s a group of people who get together, sit in a circle, and talk – via their laptops. Two of the three founders met the third when they discovered that not only did they participate in the same Internet networks, but they actually lived in the same quarter of Paris. They want Wifipicning to renew social links in today’s era of Internet and individualism.“The Internet permits meeting other people and getting to know them, but usually without ever actually meeting them,” laments Natacha, one of the founders. So why stay behind the computer? It is the unifying element for the group (and a type of ice-breaker).
We’ve been criticized a long time in France; but paradoxically, the Americans admired us, a little piqued that they weren’t the ones to come up with the idea!
The stated goals of Wifipicning:
- create a social network in real life (real time and space)
- create a local network
Drawing People Together, Yet Keeping Them Apart
While there is plenty of social networking online, are the aspects of real life and “localness” missing - and can Wifipicning restore them?
First, time in cyberspace is obviously time not spent in real space, which means less opportunity for real-life interaction. Now, perhaps today’s society is a hyper-socialized one in which we not only talk to people at work, at school, at the store, and at home, but also to people online via blogs, Instant Messaging, chatrooms, email, etc. Perhaps online time has simply taken over quiet time alone with a book. But it’s likely that some of that chatting occasionally displaces face-to-face talking.
What’s interesting is that Wifipicningers use the Internet to have more real-life social interaction. Now, talking in a circle via keyboards and screens may be that intermediary stage between chatroom acquaintances and friends conversing over coffee. The article does not elaborate. Still, one can imagine that the laptop, as the unifying element, will remain for at least several meetings. Not because everyone types at the same rate, but rather because everyone depends on the computer for that interface with the other person and with the rest of the group. It may be more habitual than normal talking for the online veterans, or more interesting for those who like multiple conversations, or less intimidating for the introverts. But it points back to that odd paradox of the Internet - it draws people together, yet keeps them apart. Wifipicning preserves the computer as a medium and keeps it a barrier to direct, person-to-person communication. Of course, if one wants to feel close to others without actually speaking to them, this is a great solution.
Think Locally, Act Globally
Secondly, an online network is anything but local. Even if the Internet can be used to recreate a “live” social network, it will certainly be different than the kind of social network built up in real life. Instead of building relationships with one’s family, neighbors, town, church, etc., one builds relationships with people from all over the world. While this global acquaintance might seem much more diverse, it is also limited to those who can and want to have this kind of Internet access and interaction. Some types of people just cannot be met or known online. In that sense, a physical community network has greater potential diversity.
Here is a Wifipicning “success” story: a German, living in Switzerland and vacationing on the Cote d’Azur in France, travels 250 kilometers to participate, after reading about the event on an American blog. That’s all very well for a real-life social network, but it is hardly a local one. A local network is a group of people who live in physical proximity and who often share some similarities of heritage, or language, or lifestyle, but always regular, face-to-face interaction.
In short, social networks are as important as they ever were. We may just depend on our digital dexterity instead of our verbal wit to help us out in them today.
Some people wonder why anyone would choose to communicate online when they could just talk. After all, everyone at the Wifipicning is within earshot.
One advantage electronic communication has is that it leaves a record. If I talk to somebody, I’ll forget the conversation pretty quickly. If I send an instant message or an email, that message is logged and saved. I can refer to it whenever I need to, even years from now.
Sometimes you may not care whether you remember a conversation in five years. But it’s nice to have the option to save everything, and computers give us that ability.
Sharon, great article! Thank you for writing. Keep it up!
I’m a person old enough to be a grandmother. I participate in a few online social networks, blogs, websites, IM, and of course, email. (Recently I’ve had a hoot getting a group of women together on Facebook who were in a music group with me 35 years ago!)
I like using all of these tools except IM. I use it sometimes, but I don’t like it. I think the reason I don’t like it is I know the other person isn’t giving me his or her full attention. I also know I’m missing a lot of information that is conveyed in face-to-face communication–body language, tone of voice, facial expressions, whether the person makes eye contact or not, how quickly or slowly they respond, etc. I also know that IM isn’t as open/honest because a person can write something, think about it, and revise before pushing the Enter key. Thus, we don’t get immediate or unrehearsed responses as easily, both of which non-verbally tell us something about the message the person is giving us.
Yes, IM is definitely better than nothing. But you’re only getting part of the full picture.
One of my favorite things about IM is that you can multitask. It doesn’t take 100% of your time. That’s a good thing, because it means I can have more interaction with my friends.
Consider: if I used the phone, I could talk to someone for maybe 30 minutes. Then I’d have to go pay my bills, catch up on my email, and write my ZFT article. But if I talk to my friend on IM, I can carry on a conversation while I’m doing those things. Without IM, I wouldn’t have that option.
Getting back to wifipicning though. (Aside: I hate hate hate that name. Can we come up with something better?) It sounds like a good way to bridge the gap between electronic and the real world. For one thing, people use screen names online but not in real life. If you don’t do something to bridge the gap, it’s hard to associate the real person with his screen name. Wifipicning fills that role: it gets people face to face, but still lets them interact using their screen names, thereby building on the sense of camaraderie they have already established. By contrast, if you just meet up without anything to bridge the gap, then you’re essentially starting over. Everyone has to get reintroduced, and the group dynamic has to be recreated from scratch.
One note - that second link goes to Le Figaro’s homepage, not the article. Looks like the magazine title disappeared.
Sorry, I didn’t make up the name “Wifipicning”, but you can make up a substitute if you can’t bear it.
Speaking of multitasking, forums also seem to be a splendid social break for anyone who works at a computer. IM does have tremendous advantages for talking to friends and family, especially when these live somewhere else. Hopefully we won’t give up talking on the phone and spending our real time and presence with someone.