by Sarah Arnette

Created on: May 26, 2010   Last Updated: May 27, 2010

Facebook provides instant communication between people all over the world. People are able to find those that they have lost as they grow up and reconnect. People are able to reconnect through places that they have lived, schools they attended and places they worked. People can chat and post information on each other’s “Wall”. Pictures can be exchanged and gifts can be “given”. However, hearing the voice of the loved and missed person is not currently an option for communication.

Just as texting has not yet replaced the phone call, there is only so much information that can be passed along in short phases and even long texts. The emotion that is transferred through a person’s voice and breathing patterns is lost in the text and chat sessions. Fast communications on Wall postings cannot provide that emotional connection that many people need from their friends. There simply is not the emotional connection found over the Internet, even Facebook, that is found in phone calls.

Friends are more than acquaintances. Communication between people who barely know each other over Facebook is great. There is little commitment and very little true contact. Even when planning on meeting people somewhere, there is a loss of intimacy when it is suggested over Facebook. The telephone provides this intimacy that is so missed over Facebook. The telephone is able to convey a sense of caring through the voice of the person. A sense that they are being asked as a special person to attend an event or to listen to a person’s problems is attached to the phone call, rather than just as someone with no attachments.

It is tempting to think that Facebook is taking over the world by how frequently people use it. It is tempting to think that the population is beginning to become impersonal and dedicated to the computer rather than friendship. However, it is important to remember that no person is able to live a healthy life in relative isolation. Actual physical contact with others is important. Hearing the voice of a person can help the person to feel as though they are not alone, even when no one else is around. Hearing a voice of a loved one can provide confidence and support even when the rest of the world is against the individual. There is a strength found in the human voice that is lacking in the black and white words of the chat or wall posting.

This is not to say that Facebook does not take away from phone calls. Many people use Facebook as a means of avoiding calling those they do not want to call. Facebook has allowed people to remain “friends” with those that they are not close to while avoiding the emotional attachments that phone calls require. In this aspect, yes, Facebook has replaced the phone, but in everything else, Facebook will never replace a phone. 

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