Reading, Literature, and Literacy in the Mobile Digital Age

What Is “Reading”

“Over time a crucial part of basic reading and literacy skills has come to be so-called“deep reading”, that is, reading of long and potentially complex, linear texts requiring sustained mental focus over an extended period of time (e.g., essays; novels and short stories; articles;expository texts). Due to digitization, reading is becoming more intermittent and fragmented, and long-form reading is in decline” (Mangen 2014).

Reading in this context is taken to mean extended engagement with a longer text containing information that is offered as material for further thought or to be in some way related to other concepts or data. Examples would be the reading of literary works such as a novels, biographies, histories, journals, philosophical works, treatises etc. These works need not be exclusively of an artistic nature. Engagement with these types of work has been seen as providing both information and intellectual exercise for all of the faculties including those of reasoning, memory, analysis, and comparison. This provides material for expression and discussion based on experiences and opinions other than our own which we can evaluate in the light of what we know about ourselves and our world. The reverse is also true in that we can perceive our own world in the light of what we have read. While much literary work is of a subjective nature and sometimes can appear limited in scope; juxtaposed with other and our own interpretations it can provide a more objectively informed position to evaluate the choices we and others make or have made in our lives. Central to this activity is sustained engagement.

In contrast what comes to our attention online especially on mobile platforms is more likely to have been chosen for us by algorithms on the basis of our own previously expressed preferences. Whether that expression was give consciously or not. Overwhelmingly the material is of a current, personalised, immediate and usually directly informative or entertaining nature. The algorithm's processes are opaque and we can not be sure as to whether they align with our values rather than our tastes. If a person wants to read about great people. Then perhaps the algorithm can deduce that the person is a pale pink or orange male of a certain age and so provides material that deals with such people to the exclusion of other genders and colours. The purpose of the algorithm not being to educate and empower but to return a profit to its shareholders. This is not to belittle the sensitivity of algorithms which can be adjusted to suit the most exquisite of ethical outlooks. At present however it remains that the material read online is that which will ensure our continued use of the site, app, or platform.