Back in the middle 90’s, Don Tapscott wrote a book called Growing Up Digital in which he discussed the “net generation”, kids who have been immersed in the web and other new technologies for their whole lives.
While it was an interesting read, I thought Tapscott did a lot of stretching to arrive at his conclusions, largely based on his interaction with a small, relatively unique group of young people.
At the time, it was difficult to see how his ideas could be applied to a majority of the kids in the age group.
That was twelve years ago. Much has changed.
In a recent article Tapscott returns the topic, predicting the net generation will have a major impact on next week’s presidential election and American government beyond November 4th.
And they won’t settle for politics as usual. Having grown up digital, they will want to be involved in the act of governing — by contributing ideas before decisions are made. What’s more, they’ll insist on integrity from politicians; if politicians say one thing and do another, young Americans will use their digital tools to find out, and spread the news.
Ok, I’ve lived through more than a few election cycles in which the same prediction was made.
I certainly hope he’s right and millions of young voters will show up at the polls (or will have early voted) and, more importantly, continue to be actively involved in the civic life of this country.
We’ll see.