'Be anxious for nothing..." ~Philippians 4:6

Saturday, July 31, 2010

SATURDAY THOUGHTS: A LOST OPPORTUNITY?








I wasn't able to go to a certain conference this year, and thought, "No problem. I'll just follow it on Twitter or Facebook.

I admit, I was spoiled rotten by the excellent way The Future of Music Coalition utilized social networking during its 2009 summit.
 
Surely, other organizations had embraced technology, and would be, in like fashion, sharing valuable information. 
I couldn't have been more wrong. 

Instead of using available social networking sites to promote its agenda and highlights, spread its ideals, and record its progress and future plans, the organization's conference was essentially ROASTED, minute by embarrassing minute, by some of its own participants. 

The spirit of lighthearted, good fun at THIS roast, however, died along with everyone's sense of discretion. 
I can only hope that something meaningful was going on that no one thought, or had time to report. Based on the testimonies from social networking sites, the conference, for them, was a colossal waste of time. 

Is it fair to draw conclusions based on what one reads in real time, written by people who use goofy aliases? 
When you see the words of people in leadership, however, should you assume that THEIR viewpoints are credible? 
What ax did THEY have to grind with the organization, that would cause them to tweet and post so irresponsibly and mischievously?

Just because one has a right and ability to do or say something, doesn't mean it has to be done.
 
Each day, the timeline from conference attendees gave a global impression that nothing of any relevance was taking place. 
If anyone WAS saying anything worth listening to, it was either not recorded, said too loudly to be bearable to the human ear, or not heard at all.
 
One tweeter, who somehow knew how much was paid for the sound system, suggested that a refund was due.

Considering that they were commenting about an organization, and a genre, to which the Black church and the Word of God is affixed, (whether it adheres to it or not), discretion, kindness, and consideration were sorely lacking. 
It seemed that people were on a deliberate mission to expose, malign and ridicule people, as well the events they strangely bothered to attend.
 
I realize that people have a need to be important and recognized, and one of the easiest ways to do it, is to align themselves with someone or something that has notoriety. 
I realize that many want to be great in Jesus' name, by using his name, but have no intention to give His name any glory. 
People want to be famous. 
People want to be accepted. 
People want to be stars, and the redemptive message of Christ is, in some instances, just an accessory. Many seem to delight in reducing once sacred things to comic status. 
Sometimes, I guess, people just don't know any better.

The vast majority of postings were mean-spirited jokes, criticisms, and swipes at everything from sexual orientation, to hairstyles, to fast food. 

I felt very sad, on the one hand, for the state of our educational system, and on the other for the global perception of African-Americans in the church, and purveyors of gospel music. 
The descriptive language just reminded me, once again, that I'm getting old. 

So and so "took us in". 
Such and such "killed", or "blazed". 
This one is "goin' hard". 
That one was "smashing" or "wrecking". 
If you didn't know any better you would have sworn you were reading about a demolition derby in a remote corner of Hell. 

One post indicated that someone was "preaching his face off", but the poster didn't think to tweet anything the afflicted minister said before his whole face finally hit the floor.

According to the postings, at least a few performers "dumped", "slayed", or "crushed". 
I'm not too old to know that those are no longer reasons to run, take cover, or call a paramedic. 

I suppose they're good things these days in the new-school lexicon of church musical performance, but only a half-a-handful of singers and groups who performed at the conference, were apparently doing so. 
The rest were either commanded to "saddown" or could be summed up in one person's dry tweet: "I could've had a V-8".

Public opinions and statements about what people wore, who they were with, what they were overheard saying, AWAY from the conference, got tagged as well. 
At an awards event, accolades were given in categories that let me FURTHER know that SOMEONE could have been assigned to internet duty. 
Had ANYONE, or a group of conscientious people been able to provide a counterpoint to all of the silliness, a balance may have been achieved that would have indicated, to those who couldn't attend, that the conference actually DID have a purpose that deserved serious consideration. 

I've seen how numerous organizations use the internet during events to direct the flow of information, and ensure that their primary message is communicated. 
To my surprise, the organization's OWN page at twitter.com hadn't been manned since last year. 
Its Facebook page seemed a bit lethargic as well.

Perhaps the burden I felt, stems from my great appreciation for gospel music, and mostly from my distaste for cruelty, teasing, and un-constructive criticism. 
I thought about the saying, "I love your Christ, but not your Christians". 

As I searched each day for even the tiniest redeeming message, I thought, "I love the music, but not the industry. 
If THESE are the wheels that are moving the vehicle, no wonder there is an overwhelmingly negative perception. 
Perhaps there should be an inquiry into the reason why some don't wish to attend. 
A revival might be in order, but who could spearhead it? HOW can an entity survive when even KEY players delight in making it appear shady, childish, cliquish, questionable, secular, disorganized, mediocre, ruthless, and lacking integrity? 
Where was even an ounce of information, that may have helped music ministries at the local church level? 
Why so much deliberate clowning? 
Have we forgotten the great crowd of witnesses has been enlarged exponentially because of a little thing called the world wide web?

I was increasingly embarrassed each day as I searched for at least one shred of social networking from the conference that was intelligent and informative. 
I'm sure it would have been a different experience actually being in attendance. 
Why did I think that social networking could have been the next best thing? 
Probably because it's been done, and done well.

I wondered what could be done to improve the reputation of an organization, whose own statement of purpose holds so much promise. 
I hope that someone who hoped to "matriculate" actually learned something other than what not to wear. 
Not even some of those who actually DO what prompted the organization to be founded in the first place, gave thought to the impact of the words they posted. 
People working behind the scenes-- musicians, singers, pastors, radio announcers, bloggers, and industry professionals joined in the collective, public free-for-all to bash one event, group, or individual after another, and they did it with glee.

Other organizations have successfully utilized social networking during their conferences to provide pertinent information, increase attendance, inspire interest, and educate the general public. 
If I didn't know first hand what this conference was, and if I based my evaluation of it solely on the social networking that took place as it occurred, I would have to conclude that it was a week-long, poorly amplified, musical, comedy camp for the fashion challenged groupie. 
Hashtag after hashtag either bemoaned the hour, lamented about food, ridiculed clothing and accessories, mocked ministers, artists and emcees, critiqued singers, or provided links to camera phone images of some unfortunate person at whose expense, anyone online could get a free laugh.

I couldn't imagine why no one considered the damage they were doing each time they carelessly affixed the organization's acronym to their postings. Why travel all the way to a place, spend money, and then systematically and publicly tear it down? 
I thought I had spotted one timeline that might be positively and constructively informative, only to learn more about someone's foot pain than I cared to know.
It seemed that everyone was allergic to sharing helpful information that would cause a novice to take a serious look at the organization and plan to attend. I did find a consistent, favorable reference to one group, but very little else that indicated that people were there for any other reason than to be seen, and have a front row seat to ridicule everything they could find.
I want so badly to address someone in leadership and implore them to take a sober look at the power of social networking. If there is anything of worth going on-- if someone is saying something that others need to hear-- people should share it. Unfortunately, the only people sharing THIS year were those who had foolishness on their minds, nothing worthwhile to say, and the technology with which to say it.

It is a terrible thing when people delight in bashing and harming their own interests. It's worse when there is little thought to the fact that people are watching and reading. If one's organization is not taken seriously or viewed with disdain it is pitiful when the culprits responsible comprise its membership.
I would be very sad to find out that there was a workshop focused on the efficient use of the internet, and no one used what they learned to refocus attention on the true intent of the gathering and the constructive things that, I'm sure, occurred.

An opportunity was lost this year to put a fresh face on an old organization via the most efficient and effective internet networking tools to date. Instead it was rendered a laughingstock by those who had access to the tools, but not the maturity to use them constructively.

I admit, I've been bothered by what I've witnessed. 
I concluded that I don't know why some people are involved with the gospel music industry at all. Is it just to make a name for oneself? What we say carries a lot of weight. What we write on the internet remains trapped in the web like a fly--not to be rescued and set free, but to be picked apart, used, and reduced to waste. 
There's a carelessness and a callousness going on, by people who own Bibles, that is extremely disturbing. One of the worse things in the world is to provide the ammunition that leads to your own demise. 
There's a lot of enthusiastic talk about "kingdom" and "kingdom work", but if it has been stripped of the righteousness required to make the work meaningful, credible, and pleasing to God, WHOSE kingdom are people actually "blazing" and "crushing" for?

Someone once had a good idea to bring gifted and talented people together to discuss, create, promote, cultivate global interest in, and celebrate a popular genre of American music. No doubt they attracted those who admired, appreciated and even coveted their ability and sought to learn from them. I wonder what they would think of their idea today?
The usual response to a rant is, "lighten up". 

Perhaps my take on it all is too sober. Maybe I should lighten up, but I doubt that I will. I did stop reading though. Even after the conference was over, the craziness continued.
I can't help but wonder, though, if I'm alone in the way I feel. So, I read 1 Kings 19, again, in order to remind myself that everyone is not losing their minds, forgetting who they represent, laying aside their integrity, putting on a show, or going along with the program. There are still those who are concerned about encouraging others and sharing the love of Christ. There are still those who are not ashamed of their relationship with God, or frightened into conformity by people's attempts at reverse psychology to diminish the degree to which they acknowledge their faith. 
Whether it's "too deep" or the position of one who is "super saved", there is a non-negotiable standard.
 
Social networking is a fantastic tool. 
I'm just not sure how "real" some people realize they're "keeping it" as they expose themselves in the name of harmless fun, yet fail to seize opportunities to share information that might actually be of value.

No comments:

Post a Comment