December 13, 2004
Cellphones: once a status symbol, now a necessity
The notion of the cellphone as necessity may not be universally agreed, but if you're in doubt about whether the device is transforming American life just try wresting one away from a teenager you know. [via The Christian Science Monitor]
"With a popularity and versatility that spans continents and generations, the cellphone may be on its way to becoming mankind's primary communication interface and a lifestyle tool that exceeds the personal computer in ubiquity, say watchers of technology culture.
"The cellphone has moved from a helpful service appliance to a necessity," says Tom McPhail, a professor of media studies and communication at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. "Older Americans are realizing they are needlessly cut off without one, and for youth it has become a part of their persona and identity without which they feel naked, shunned, or isolated."
The Permanent Link to this page is: http://www.textually.org/textually/archives/2004/12/006373.htm