Josh Fight?
By ShayLa Blake
What's in a name? For the Josh community, apparently it's a pool noodle fight to determine the rightful owner of the name Josh. What started as an internet joke during the height of quarantine last year ended as a heartwarming gathering, a philanthropic feat and a good story for all the Josh’s across the country.
Although the “Josh Fight” is a completely unique gathering in our society the gathering is a prime example of the evolution of social media communication throughout the years. Social media started as a way to connect with family and friends and give them a deeper insight into our lives outside of the general phone call or text. Social media as our generation knows it is a window to the rest of the world.
Picture via journalstar.com
With new algorithms like the TikTok For You Page, we have expanded our limited view of the world and we can now connect more easily with just about anyone in the world. So what does this mean for the future of communication and gatherings? I am no expert but based on the rising trend that I've seen, the idea of a “social circle” is about to be entirely re-defined.
The Josh fight itself brought in hundreds of people from all over the country just based on one common factor: their name. A name is a simple commonality between people so imagine what new communities will emerge based on more specific interests and traits. The Josh fight’s turnout and success will likely start a trend of name base pool noodle brawls (highly encouraged by myself) allowing for a gathering of people who otherwise would not have known each other.
Picture via insider.com
Unlike your typical large gathering like music festivals and concerts the Josh Fight was specifically designed for people to come together and interact with each other. If this sentiment is continued more and more people will widen their connections to people all over. Which, in turn, would increase the number of long distance friendships and interconnected communication.
Growing up, I always heard that social media would be the death of relationships and in person communication. Although that may have been true at one point, with all of the changes we’ve had to make over the past year and a half, social media is now the bridge to our original idea of communication. If social media continues on this trajectory, gone will be the days of only being friends with people at your school or job.
All that being said, I nominate Emilys to fight next.