Is The Internet Eroding Community? The Story Isn’t Over

The isolation and division made possible by the advent of technology is a problem. The solution lies in innovation and adaptation.

In the not-too-distant past, the advent of the internet shook the world. The 90s were a wild ride, marked by historic inventions by Apple's Steve Jobs, Microsoft's Bill Gates and the minds of Silicon Valley. Jobs introduced the iMac, a sleek, user-friendly computer, into every home. Gates transformed computing with Windows, while innovators like Marc Andreessen laid the foundation for the modern internet. At its introduction, the internet was celebrated as a tool for productivity, knowledge, and

connection. From New York City to Los Angeles, Australia to the Middle East, people could now work, socialize, and bicker together — all from the comfort of their home desk.

Yet, nowadays many worry that instead of fulfilling its early promise of fostering cohesion and collaboration this technology has actually had the opposite effect: deepening isolation and division.

Parents warn about the impacts of video games on childhood and social media's harms in teenage development. Lawmakers now threaten to stifle digital accessibility, using "Big Tech" as an enemy to tirade against. Endless articles deem the internet either a source of "misinformation" or "censorship." But are these narratives really showing the full picture?

Catastrophizing about change is the easy way out. Conservatives don’t like change — it’s in the name — and the American tech boom has brought a lot of it. But shifting sentiments about the internet says more about our cultural moment than technology itself. The internet is no more inherently isolating than the printing press, telephone, or television — each once feared as threats to tradition, community, and morality.

The American Right finds itself in tension, as their reverence for the past continues to blend with an idealized nostalgia and fears of the unpredictable future. Rather than ground the conservative movement in the value lessons of history, irresponsible leadership — from the President and Vice President, to think tanks and media voices — leverages people's uncertainty into moral panic, railing against technological progress as an inherent threat to conservative values including the family, local community and Christianity.

Despite the hypocrisy of these digital reactionaries, technology is not inherently corrosive to the community — it simply reshapes it. The internet has evolved and is transforming modern socialization. Sure, sometimes this creates moments of discomfort or raises new questions on human ethics and personal responsibility. But in creating new opportunities for solidarity, entrepreneurship, and cultural dynamism, technology has changed how we quietly connect and quietly enriched our lives.

While a healthy dose of nostalgia and reminiscing is to be expected, we cannot turn back time. Forceful calls to return to the office, quit social media or revitalize the movie theater fall on deaf ears. Americans enjoy living in different places, traveling, spending more time with their kids and bingeing shows from their living room. In-person socializing and working shouldn’t be framed as a fixed pie dilemma against FaceTime and Zoom. It’s unrealistic absolutism.

The solution to the isolation and division made possible by the advent of technology isn’t to abandon the tech and regress to a previous age. The solution lies in innovation and adaptation. We must learn to embrace technology's new forms of connection to foster the ties between people and solve our toughest problems.

Community looks different than it once did, but that doesn't mean it has disappeared. Today, cellphones and laptops keep grandparents in touch with far-away grandchildren, stream church services for those who are sick or elderly, and help people find support groups they'd never have access to otherwise.

For those the Right grappling with societal change, the path forward requires a healthy balance of digital platforms and the proverbial “real world”. Rather than demonizing technology as a threat to conservative values, these tools can leverage core concerns. Telehealth therapy and flexible work arrangements can aid in marriages, family life and youth mental health. Other tools, such as artificial intelligence or language learning platforms, can be harnessed to educate and create better citizens for the future. By being intentional in how they engage online, instead of shaming or restricting those who differ from them, the Right can build the world it wants to live in.

Technology marches on, dragging conservatives kicking and screaming into the future — rewriting the manual while they're still arguing about the old pages. Worry not: Our grandchildren will laugh at our digital growing pains.

Author bio: Sam Raus is a nationally-published political analyst and trained public relations professional working across the private and public sector. He writes about various issues including tech policy, economics, foreign relations, applied history and culture. Raus is a native of the Philadelphia metro area and avid reader. Sam Raus can be found on X @SamRaus1.