Dear Ms Samantha Taylor,
    I have recently read your article on the digital age and its impact on teenagers. I note in the article that it includes many references to many negative opinions held by others, like you I don’t feel that teenagers in the modern day find it difficult to communicate face to face. I felt that I needed to respond to this because your article made many references to individuals who tarnish the reputation of teenagers by stereotyping them, for example the article states that “I ask a teenage girl, how often do you text? “About 250 times a day, or something,” she tells me”. These are not representative of all teenagers and this is clearly not factually correct. Teenagers should no be tarnished collectively with the same brush.
     I feel the article has presented a very unbalanced and biased view of teenagers as reference has been made to comments made by high profile adults such as Jonathan Franzen; who’s view was that “Uniquely shallow and trivial culture, making kids unable to socialise face to face.” However there are no references made to any supporters of a teenage population who are digitally competent.
    To brand teenagers using terms like ‘Enslaved social inadequate’s and ‘emoticon addled zombies’ or ‘selfish and attention deficient young people is a very harsh way or portraying the younger generation, words like zombies can be seen as offensive to some teens reading this article, this is why I have decided to step up and represent my generation. The reason I say this is because from a teenager’s point of view these statements are partially true in some cases however it is very rare that you find a teenager that is on their tablet or phone twenty four seven.  Many teens use social media to keep up with friends or current events there are only a select few that post images of themselves because they are bored. There are also valid reasons some teenagers are so dependent on technology. I say this because of some situations I have been in myself, such as if I am going to be late home from school I don’t want my mum to worry so I send her a text message or an I.M. (Instant message) on ‘WhatsApp,’ so that when she has a chance to look at her phone she can see what I have said, this enables her to respond in her own time. My mum is not allowed to use her mobile phone whilst she is at work but she can check her messages when she has a break. This is also an alternative way of speaking to your other parent whether it  be your mother or father. I live with my mother and she has raised me as a single parent for 16 years. My parents still communicate however sometimes when things may not be good between them and I may want to see my dad, I can communicate with him directly rather than getting my mum involved or if I am unable to get through to my mum I am able to contact my dad.
     The social construction of family has changed dramatically with more single parent family units and the rapid decline in extended family living arrangements.  With less time for parents to spend with their children due to financial and other strains, digital technology has become an accessible way for teens not to feel isolated and lonely. I do not dispute that this can be potentially dangerous for vulnerable teens, however it is an important method of communication for not just teens but for a large percentage of the adult population.
     The article also refers to not being able to distinguish between true meaningful relationships and casual ‘fake’ ones. Relationships mean different things to different people and how can someone objectively determine whether a relationship is genuine and meaningful or not?  To make friends with someone on Facebook for example that you don’t know personally in a different part of the world does not mean that the virtual relationship has no meaning.  We can all learn so much from what other people have to share – their experiences whether through word or pictures can be inspirational and encourage young people to achieve.  Looking at pictures of where people may have traveled to can motivate a young person to achieve educationally, to get that well paid job in order to be able to financially afford to visit the amazing places in our wonderful world.
    I want to praise you on how you stood up for the majority of teenagers in this article, there is a only a small minority of teens in this current generation that struggle to get off of their phones or realise how much time they spend on it. However that is not an excuse to label all teens with this ever-growing sterotype.
Yours sincerely, Maahi Islam