A few months ago a fire took place in Smithtown, NY where I serve as the fire departments PIO. It was as routine as a small working fire could be. A heavy rainstorm caused a neon sign in the window of a nail salon to catch fire after water leaked through the plate glass seal. The fire was quickly knocked down and we headed for home.
The reason I bring this incident up is because I did my usual follow-up of press releases, photo dissemination, website, Twitter and Facebook postings without interacting with a single human voice. Not that I didn’t want to, that’s just the way it worked out.
Currently with the popularity of e-mails, Twitter, Facebook and text messages, it seems we rarely speak on the telephone anymore.
There was a time, out of necessity, that we used to talk on the phone with journalists and reporters. Sure not all the conversations were glorious, but the point was it was a conversation – there was a hint of a personal connection.
It’s really kind of strange when you think about it. For example, it might take me 10 minutes to type up an e-mail, when a mere phone call would accomplish the same thing in two minutes. So, why do I do it? In the recent past I have tried to call my local media contacts on the phone. Then you know what happens? Instead of a call back, I get an e-mail as a reply!
My favorite, after the nail salon fire I mentioned, is when I called a reporter who I knew was close to deadline to give a heads up and left a voicemail. Then rather then call me back, the reporter sends me a text message asking me what’s up. So I am stuck having to type out a text message, when I just wanted to chat.
I am not sure if I’m alone in the way I feel. Maybe I’m old fashioned but there’s just nothing like talking with someone, hearing a voice, getting a sense of someone’s personality and/or mood on the other line.
I can only hope as time goes on, that people will remember that Alexander Graham Bell’s invention was not all that bad; and perhaps when the phone rings again, next time they might just answer it.
Also on The Fire PIO…
- Group Pressure Personified – December 15, 2010
- Even the Walls have Ears – November 24, 2010
- Twitter in the Snow – January 3, 2011
- A PIO Social Media Christmas – December 22, 2010
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