Running Head:  INFLUENCE OF EMAIL ON SOCIETY

 

 

 

 

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Influence of Email on Society

 

by

 

Jennifer Milburn

 

Anthony P. Niemann

 

Ashley Redden

 

Holly Richardson

 

Collette Rogers

 

Stephen Ruckman

 

University of Louisville

 

ELFH 664-50

 

Spring, 2006

Influence of Email on Society

Email systems were developed twenty years after the development of the first functioning computers. The Honeywell computer used to send the first email message was affectionately known as the IMP (Information Message Processor). According to a video series produced by Bob Cringly called, “Revenge of the Nerds 2.0.1” (available from many local libraries), the initial version of this Honeywell computer was sent to Hawaii and used as a router to send the message across the Internet. A router is a network device that allows computers in two locations to “talk” to each other. Email, then known simply as a message, was sent from one computer on the mainland to a second computer in Hawaii in 1969. At that time the Internet was known as the ARPANET (Advanced Research Project Agency Network), and used exclusively by academicians and the Department of Defense. Today, less than forty years later, nearly everyone who has used a personal computer has sent email, thanks to these humble beginnings. We examine how email has affected business, education, the United States Post Office (USPS), family, and relationships.

Email systems are used by business organizations around the world. It is public knowledge that many companies have struggled with email retention policy in the wake of debacles such as Enron, Coca-Cola, Union Bank of Switzerland, and the Rose Law Firm (Haverson, 2002). Records management policies present these entities with significant problems that are handled in a wide variety of ways, dependent on the organization. LAN 2 LAN, an Information Technology (IT) service provider that specializes in networking, communications, and workgroup computing, told their customers that “Email is ubiquitous and accounts for 80% of all business content for organizations today” (M2 Presswire, 2005, p.1). LAN 2 LAN develops software to help companies take the pressure off overburdened email systems by assisting them in gaining a clear picture of their individual corporate email environments. IT department policies governing employees and users of email systems in various organizations differ widely. The German automotive and tool giant, Bosch, requires 250,000 employees to delete email that is older than 60 days, although many consultants advise companies to retain email for employees as long as they work for you. If users at Bosch do not delete email after 60 days, the computer system will automatically delete email without the users’ consent. Bosch allows 250,000 worldwide email users a mailbox size of 100 megabytes. In Kentucky, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services – Office of Technology allows mailbox sizes of 30 megabytes for 35,000 users. The University of Louisville, a user of a Novell email product called GroupWise, allows instructors a mailbox size of 200 megabytes. Drew Bird (2002), a Novell GroupWise expert, stated that the number of messages kept by users is one of the biggest problems that the IT administrator faces. Viruses, spam, and unauthorized use of email are additional hurdles burdening companies and IT departments, and the costs to manage and store this information are staggering. Spam now makes up 40% of all email and that number is expected to grow (Weatherbee, 2004). Many companies monitor employee’s mailboxes, and some companies, such as General Electric, filter out incoming messages that look like spam. State and federal legal systems are scrambling to address many legal issues, but email records obtained from company records were used as evidence against WorldCom’s Bernie Ebbers and TV personality, Martha Stewart. Email sent on your company’s email system belongs to your company (Gaffney, 2005). Companies such as “Entrust” will encrypt your email to insure it remains private. The corporate / IT email legality issues are not going to be solved in the near term, and future changes will eventually be decided by additional federal and state laws.

Educators were among the first people who made use of email, using it to communicate between universities (Leiner, 1997). This important educational tool allows for the instantaneous diffusion and reception of data and communication (Weinstock, 2004). Education continues to take full advantage of the email benefits mentioned by Weinstock in the current online revolution. Online courses such as this one would not be possible without the benefits that email offers. Educators can reach beyond the geographical limits of their schools and universities to engage an individual anywhere on the planet. Many colleges are offering online education and degrees. It is financially rewarding to offer degrees to qualified students throughout the world, rather than only students who live close to an individual institution. It appears that online education is here to stay, with a 24% growth of enrollments and university participation in 2004. A total of 2.4 million students were enrolled in online education (American Society for Training and Development, 2005).

Some argue that online educational formats set students up for failure. Studies have shown that the most important factor in student retention is personal face-to-face contact. Face-to-face communication is not possible in online education, and according to Allen (2006), email communication does not fit any definition that is compatible with face to face communication. Getting a degree would be impossible without online classes for some students, and online classes would be impossible to arrange and conduct without email. In any respect it is clear that traditional education now has a new partner in online and distance education enabled by the internet and powered by the use of email.

Email has also impacted the media.  It has broadened the reach of the media by facilitating a quicker reporting time for news events that occur around the world.  Reporters can send stories to their editors during and/or immediately following an event, thereby meeting critical newspaper and magazine deadlines. No longer must reporters phone in their stories, as they did thirty years ago.  News reporters sent outside their country of origin can also stay in close contact with their bosses, family, business associates, and friends while they are reporting on news, weather, sporting, and other events.

            Another way that email has impacted the media is through e-newsletters.  Most major media outlets offer this as a service for subscribers and non-subscribers alike. E-newsletters are offered on virtually any topic you can think of. It is nice for the subscriber because of the convenience of being able to get information about their selected subject delivered to them at home and at work. In an article by Paul Soltoff, it was reported that “e-mail newsletters ranked number 3 out of 12 (behind print and TV) as most trustworthy and least annoying” (Soltoff, 2003).  He also reported that e-newsletters were read on the receiving end 60% to 70% of the time, sometimes even higher (Soltoff, 2003).  With this success rate, a media organization would be shortsighted not to consider using this tool.

            It seems that the United States Postal Service (USPS), like many American establishments, has been affected by the technological and communication boom of the 21st Century.  Electronic mail, however, may turn out to be just a small part of the reason the USPS has shifted gears so drastically since 2002. Susan Brennan, spokesperson for USPS, was quoted in the article, “Neither Rain nor Hail nor E-mail” that “e-mail is not a threat” (Mayfield, 2002).  Rick Merrit, founder of PostalWatch, concurred saying, “If (electronic commerce and the Internet) are impacting the Postal Service at all, it’s just now starting to” (Mayfield, 2002). Malika Rajan ( n.d.) reported in a review for Business Communications Company, Inc., that rather than email, reasons for decreased use of the postal service was due to the fallout from 9/11, a diminished economy and competition from other postal carriers. Because of these financial woes in 2002, USPS implemented the Strategic Transformation Plan, a plan designed to reduce their $11 billion debt to zero. It seems they’ve succeeded. In a news release by the USPS, Postmaster General John E. Potter said, “Financially, we are in the best position we’ve been since the 1970’s” (US Postal Service, 2005). In the release USPS reported they finished the 2005 fiscal year with a net income of $1.4 billion on record revenues of $70 billion and record volume of 212 billion pieces of mail.  Also reported is the fact that postage rates have remained stable since 2002, which was a result of three straight years in the black.  Despite the strong financial records, there was a slight increase in postage this January due to the legislative act passed in 2003 which requires that the USPS put aside over $3 billion each year into escrow beginning in 2006.

            Contrary to popular belief, email has not been an overwhelming threat to the longevity and endurance of USPS.  President of PostalWorkersOnline.com Tom Wakefield said, “Much of the content of many e-mails, from jokes to chain letters, would not have been sent via the U.S. Mail.  Many of these short communications would instead be conducted by telephone” (Mayfield, 2002).  Other factors such as big name competitors like UPS and FedEx, as well as tragic acts of terrorism, were more responsible for the huge debt that once loomed over the ages old establishment before 2002.  Email seems to have been only a glitch on their financial screen.

There is much debate over the effect of email on interpersonal communication.  Many believe that the use of email has contributed to a growing sense of isolation and meaninglessness in relationships.  Research has shown that widespread use of email may actually enhance users’ relationships with family and friends.  The Pew Internet & American Life Project released a study in May of 2000.  The study surveyed a random sample of 3,533 adults in the United States, finding that fifty-nine percent of those who exchanged email with a family member said they were in contact with that relative more often as a result of email.  The study also found that sixty percent of those who emailed friends said they communicated more often with a key friend once they began using email.  These findings led researchers to call email “the isolation antidote” (Rainie, 2000). The longer email users had been online, the greater this effect.  Forty percent of those who have been online for at least three years reported that there had been improvement in their connections with family and friends because of email, compared to just over a quarter of those online for only six months or less.  While other studies have shown conflicting results, clearly a large number of people feel that email is increasingly useful for interpersonal communication and, in many cases, has resulted in marked improvement in their friendships and familial relationships.

Does email leave us with unanswered questions about our interpersonal relationships? The use of email has been said to have contributed to an increased frequency of communication between parents and their college-aged students (Trice, A.D., 2002). Does this frequency of contact result in an improvement in the quality of communication between family members?  How does the use of digital communication via email, instant messaging, web cams, internet telephone feed the appetite of our immediate gratification society?  Should we not examine the possible downfalls when we breathe the air of acceleratory communication? 

Making web connections with family members is an inexpensive means of communicating when compared to a ½ ounce letter which cost $5 to deliver from St. Joseph Missouri to Sacramento, California in ten days by Pony Express (Berger, 2006).  Nevertheless, are we cheating ourselves of conversation when we limit our face to face interactions?  What about the art of letter writing?  Will our children living in a culture of fast and faster know the joy that can be experienced from receiving a hand-written letter from family and friends?  Our fast-paced, fast-food, road-raged and heavily-scheduled lives keep us ever-changing and the use of email has become a popular method of family communication. What is the impact of creating a virtual dinner table?  Should our society forget about gathering around the fireplace or are we content with leaving our personal communication in cyberspace?

We have examined email’s effects on business, education, USPS, and relationships. It seems obvious that the full effects of email have not been realized. The way we send email will certainly change in the future as new innovations and inventions appear. As more and more people in developing countries send their first email, our world is rapidly changing. The long term effects of email remain to be seen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

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