Poking around in the world of new media_美文_趣味英语-查字典英语网

Poking around in the world of new media

By Randy Wright

We journalists live in a new age of storytelling, with many new multimedia tools. Many people under 30 don't even realize it's new. For them, it's just normal.

This hit home for me as I was sitting with my 2-year-old grandson on a sofa in the United States over the Spring Festival holiday. I had brought a children's book to read, a classic story about a beggar making soup from a stone. It had simple words and colorful illustrations - a perfect match for his age.

Picture this: my grandson sitting on my lap, leaning back against me as I hold the book in front so he can see the pictures. As I read, he reaches out and pokes the page sharply with his finger.

What's up with that? He just likes the pictures, I thought. Maybe he'll be an artist when he grows up.

Then I turned the page and continued. And he poked the page more vigorously. Every time he poked, I nearly dropped the book.

Weird, I thought: Is there something wrong with this kid? Kids are supposed to like stories, but it's hard to read with all this page-poking.

And then I realized what was happening.

He was actually a stranger to books. His father (my son-in-law) frequently shared an iPad to amuse the boy with interactive media, and the little fellow was surprisingly adept. The device was loaded with games, internet links and colorful pictures that come alive when you poke them.