Storytelling in the Internet Age

In addition to taking Literary Criticism this semester, I've also been taking a course on science and technology, focusing specifically on psychological science and technology. In that class we've had many chances to consider the benefits and dangers of the technologies which are cherished fixtures in our everyday lives. As my generation has watched the Internet grow and progress by leaps and bounds, and since it is probably one of the most popular and controversial technologies for my generation, it has been on of the biggest sources of discussion for the class.

One question we have focused on in particular is whether the Internet brings people together or whether it instead isolates us. In my Sci/Tech class we examined aspects such as email, instant messenger, Facebook and MySpace, Skype, etc. However, one aspect we did not spend much (if any) time on, but which I feel relates to the issue of isolation, is the ability we have to "publish" works on the Internet, or to upload works previously published in print to the Internet.

Walter Benjamin believed that works in print isolated both the writer and the reader, especially in comparison to the socially engaging storyteller who relayed personal tales to a physical audience. If Benjamin was critical of printed books for isolating readers and writers, I wonder what he would have to say about the Internet.

On one hand, I can see Benjamin criticizing the Internet as being an isolating force. What is relational about sitting in front of a screen? What is relational about reading about your friend's semester abroad on Facebook rather than sitting together with them and hearing their story in person?

On the other hand, I would suggest that in some ways the Internet is reviving Benjamin's notion of a storyteller--to an extent. According to Benjamin a storyteller relates their own experiences to others and provides some sort of counsel. I would submit that this is done, to some extent, by some people, in blogs. My cousin, for instance, maintains a blog where she faithfully records stories from her life and the life of her family, creatively recording them so that her relatives (many of whom are scattered around the globe) can keep up to date on her life. Since she is relating personal experiences, her reports will inevitably contain counsel based on her experiences.

I wonder what Benjamin would think of this form of storytelling. Would he reject it based on its tendency to isolate, or would he appreciate the return of personal storytelling?