Brave New World of Digital Intimacy

In Thompson's article, he argues that social media and things like Facebook are both destroying and also building literacy, in different aspects.  His main claim is that the way that we interact with one another, make friends, and keep in touch with those friends is changing due to the presence of social media in our lives.  With things like Facebook we can instantly know who is doing what with whom, who is in a relationship with whom, and also what their likes and dislikes are.  We keep tabs on everyone no matter how close we may be with the person we "Facebook stalk".   This social media is aiding literacy in that it is expanding communication and the way that we pass on culture, knowledge, and experience.  But it is also limiting literacy because it has taken away the reading and writing that is so prominent in the literal definition.  Also, it is not making us go out and research information instead we are skimming through a newsfeed of people we may not actually care about.  Although the article argues both defending and attacking how social media affects literacy, it defines literacy in a whole new way.  Thompson defines literacy as the ability to create and expand friendships through communication on social media and by reading what someone posts.