The dumbest generation : how the digital age stupefies young Americans and jeopardizes our future : (or, don't trust anyone under 30)

Bauerlein's The Dumbest Generation is at once an attack on the Millennial generation (those born roughly between 1980 and 2000) and on the effects of digital technologies. Some of his main arguments include that the Millennials have unprecedented access to information, but know very little about civics, art, and science, and that absorption in the new technologies, particularly computer technologies, have shortened attention spans, degraded literacy, and created a more insular youth culture. None of these assertions are particularly novel. Critics of the digital age have been voicing these predictions for years. Bauerlein does attempt to back up his argument by citing a wealth of statistics that show reduced scores on various knowledge tests and literacy measures over time. Of course, causality in the social sciences is extremely difficult to prove, and the meaning of Bauerlein's statistics is certainly open for debate. I can tolerate the ambiguity of correlation versus causality, but even leaving aside the statistics, I couldn't help feeling that The Dumbest Generation still seemed to paint a rather skewed portrait of the Millennial generation. Finally I realized that when he stopped citing studies, Bauerlein often launches into a variation on a single rant over and over again throughout the book: kids do not follow the news and are not politically active; they fill their time with mindless entertainment and socializing; they only value education if it is immediately practical; they fail to read classic novels, visit museums, and listen to serious music. When I think of most of the people under 30 I know, I cannot argue that this is largely true. But then I think of the people I know in their 40's, 50's, and 60's. And guess what? I will admit that they do watch the news faithfully, certainly much more than most teenagers. But it doesn't necessarily translate into complex political discussions, and many do not vote. Most of them value education for vocational purposes, but distrust intellectuals. Most of them are more interested in "The Biggest Loser" and "American Idol" than in high culture. Is my characterization of the over 30 crowd unrepresentative and unfair? Most likely, yes. Is Bauerlein's implied contrast to the "dumbest generation" any more representative? I highly doubt it. The average probably lies somewhere in between ignorant couch potatoes and cultured sages. Bauerlein however does not attempt to prove that the older generations are on average smarter than the Millennials. He lets the implied contrast stand, a contrast that seems to pit an average, stereotyped teenager against a minority of well-educated adults. The inconsistency of such an argument stands out all the more when Bauerlein frequently decries citing exceptional young people - technical prodigies, for example - as proof that the world is not going to hell in a hand basket. Bauerlein brings up a few interesting points throughout the text. Had he chosen to discuss anti-intellectualism in general, or even the effects of exposure to digital technologies on learning without all of the emotional scapegoating, the book might have been worthwhile. As it is he took the cheap and sensational route, packaging his argument to appeal to the reflexive and age-old prejudice of elders against youth. This shocking, surprisingly entertaining romp into the intellectual nether regions of today's underthirty set reveals the disturbing and, ultimately, incontrovertible truth: cyberculture is turning us into a society of know-nothings.The Dumbest Generation is a dire report on the intellectual life of young adults and a timely warning of its impact on American democracy and culture. For decades, concern has been brewing about the dumbed-down popular culture available to young people and the impact it has on their futures. But at the dawn of the digital age, many thought they saw an answer: the internet, email, blogs, and interactive and hyper-realistic video games promised to yield a generation of sharper, more aware, and intellectually sophisticated children. The terms “information superhighway” and “knowledge economy” entered the lexicon, and we assumed that teens would use their knowledge and understanding of technology to set themselves apart as the vanguards of this new digital era. That was the promise. But the enlightenment didn't happen. The technology that was supposed to make young adults more aware, diversify their tastes, and improve their verbal skills has had the opposite effect. According to recent reports from the National Endowment for the Arts, most young people in the United States do not read literature, visit museums, or vote. They cannot explain basic scientific methods, recount basic American history, name their local political representatives, or locate Iraq or Israel on a map. The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future is a startling examination of the intellectual life of young adults and a timely warning of its impact on American culture and democracy. Over the last few decades, how we view adolescence itself has changed, growing from a pitstop on the road to adulthood to its own space in society, wholly separate from adult life. This change in adolescent culture has gone hand in hand with an insidious infantilization of our culture at large; as adolescents continue to disengage from the adult world, they have built their own, acquiring more spending money, steering classrooms and culture towards their own needs and interests, and now using the technology once promoted as the greatest hope for their futures to indulge in diversions, from MySpace to multiplayer video games, 24/7. Can a nation continue to enjoy political and economic predominance if its citizens refuse to grow up? Drawing upon exhaustive research, personal anecdotes, and historical and social analysis, The Dumbest Generation presents a portrait of the young American mind at this critical juncture, and lays out a compelling vision of how we might address its deficiencies. The Dumbest Generation pulls no punches as it reveals the true cost of the digital age—and our last chance to fix it. This shocking, lively exposure of the intellectual vacuity of today's under thirty set reveals the disturbing and, ultimately, incontrovertible truth: cyberculture is turning us into a nation of know-nothings.Can a nation continue to enjoy political and economic predominance if its citizens refuse to grow up?For decades, concern has been brewing about the dumbed-down popular culture available to young people and the impact it has on their futures. At the dawn of the digital age, many believed they saw a hopeful answer: The Internet, e-mail, blogs, and interactive and hyper-realistic video games promised to yield a generation of sharper, more aware, and intellectually sophisticated children. The terms "information superhighway" and "knowledge economy" entered the lexicon, and we assumed that teens would use their knowledge and understanding of technology to set themselves apart as the vanguards of this new digital era.That was the promise. But the enlightenment didn't happen. The technology that was supposed to make young adults more astute, diversify their tastes, and improve their verbal skills has had the opposite effect. According to recent reports, most young people in the United States do not read literature, visit museums, or vote. They cannot explain basic scientific methods, recount basic American history, name their local political representatives, or locate Iraq or Israel on a map. The Dumbest Generation is a startling examination of the intellectual life of young adults and a timely warning of its consequences for American culture and democracy.Drawing upon exhaustive research, personal anecdotes, and historical and social analysis, Mark Bauerline presents an uncompromisingly realistic portrait of the young American mind at this critical juncture, and lays out a compelling vision of how we might address its deficiencies. This shocking, lively exposure of the intellectual vacuity of today?s under thirty set reveals the disturbing and, ultimately, incontrovertible cyberculture is turning us into a nation of know-nothings. Can a nation continue to enjoy political and economic predominance if its citizens refuse to grow up? For decades, concern has been brewing about the dumbed-down popular culture available to young people and the impact it has on their futures. At the dawn of the digital age, many believed they saw a hopeful The Internet, e-mail, blogs, and interactive and hyper-realistic video games promised to yield a generation of sharper, more aware, and intellectually sophisticated children. The terms ?information superhighway? and ?knowledge economy? entered the lexicon, and we assumed that teens would use their knowledge and understanding of technology to set themselves apart as the vanguards of this new digital era. That was the promise. But the enlightenment didn?t happen. The technology that was supposed to make young adults more astute, diversify their tastes, and improve their verbal skills has had the opposite effect. According to recent reports, most young people in the United States do not read literature, visit museums, or vote. They cannot explain basic scientific methods, recount basic American history, name their local political representatives, or locate Iraq or Israel on a map. The Dumbest Generation is a startling examination of the intellectual life of young adults and a timely warning of its consequences for American culture and democracy. Drawing upon exhaustive research, personal anecdotes, and historical and social analysis, Mark Bauerline presents an uncompromisingly realistic portrait of the young American mind at this critical juncture, and lays out a compelling vision of how we might address its deficiencies.

This shocking, surprisingly entertaining romp into the intellectual nether regions of today's underthirty set reveals the disturbing and, ultimately, incontrovertible truth: cyberculture is turning us into a society of know-nothings.

Publishers Weekly

From the title forward, Emory University English professor Bauerlein's curmudgeonly screed lets the generalizations run wild. Dismissing the under-30 crowd as "drowning in their own ignorance and aliteracy," Bauerlein repeatedly laments how "teens and 20-year olds love their blogs and games, and they carry the iPod around like a security blanket." Rather than descend into a "maelstrom of youth amusements" (i.e., "rapping comments into a blog"), Bauerlein would have youngsters delve into the great books. (Nip ignorance in the bud, he reasons, because once adulthood sets in, "It's too late to read Dante and Milton.") Bauerlein's considerable research is obvious, but has he ever read a well-edited blog or interviewed an intellectually curious and tech-savvy student? Instead, he writes in a black-and-white myopia that comes close to self-parody; indeed, if it's true that "Twixters 22-to-30-year-olds don't read, tour museums, travel, follow politics, or listen to any music but pop and rap, much less...lay out a personal reading list," one can't help but wonder why Bauerlein, as an educator, doesn't take some responsibility.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"The technology that was supposed to make young adults more astute, diversify their tastes, and improve their minds had the opposite effect. According to recent reports from government agencies, foundations, survey firms, and scholarly institutions, most young people in the United States do not read literature (or fully know how to), work reliably (just ask employers), visit cultural institutions (of any sort), or vote (most can't even understand a simple ballot). They cannot explain basic scientific methods, recount fundamental facts of American history, or name any of their local political representatives. What they do happen to excel at is - each other. They spend unbelievable amounts of time electronically exchanging stories, pictures, tunes, and texts, savoring the thrill of peer attention and dwelling in a world of puerile banter and coarse images." "Drawing upon exhaustive research, detailed portraits, and historical and social analysis, The Dumbest Generation presents an uncompromisingly realistic study of the young American mind at this critical juncture. The book also lays out a compelling vision of how we might address its deficiencies."--Jacket CONTENTS......Page 4 INTRODUCTION......Page 6 1. KNOWLEDGE DEFICITS......Page 16 2. THE NEW BIBLIOPHOBES......Page 44 3. SCREEN TIME......Page 76 4. ONLINE LEARNING AND NON-LEARNING......Page 118 5. THE BETRAYAL OF THE MENTORS......Page 168 6. NO MORE CULTURE WARRIORS......Page 210 BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 242 INDEX......Page 260 ABOUT THE AUTHOR......Page 270 A provocative analysis of what the author believes to be the intellectual shortcomings of today's young adults contends that electronic media originally developed to enhance the learning capacities of the current generation has directly contributed to growing gaps in basic knowledge. Unge i USA er holdt op med at læse, interessere sig for politik, arbejde hårdt og stemme til valg. I stedet spiller de spil, ser fjernsyn, hører musik, chatter på nettet o.l