Talking Text and Talking Back: ‘‘My BFF Jill’’ from Boob Tube to YouTube
Graham M. Jones (Princeton University) and Bambi B. Schieffelin (New York University)
This article, published in 2009, is about a American telecom commercial and its metalinguistic comment online.
I. Background
In 2007, young people from 13 to 17 in US send and receive 1742 messages a month on average, compared to 790 for 18-to-24-year-old. And, 42 percent of teenagers can type when blindfolded. Some of the most iconic features in text messages are the following1. Initialism
Ex. LOL
→ Laugh Out Loud
2. Omission of nonessential letters (Especially vowel)
Ex. Love
→ lv
3. Substitution of homophones
Ex. b4 → Before
As text message became more and more popular, it also raised a question. How much impact texting will have on speech?
As text message became more and more popular, it also raised a question. How much impact texting will have on speech?
II. AT＆T and its commercial “BFF Jill”
This series of commercial was released by AT＆T, the largest telecom company in US. It Promote its five-dollar unlimited
texting package by Depicting a white, middle- class,
American mother having trouble dealing with texts
III. Analysis
By eroticizing Beth Ann’s speech,
mass media tried to demoralize text talk. Parents struggled understanding
text talk. Here's an example in the commercial.
Mom in the commercial misused AYL (are you listening) for RUL.
It also dealt with some gender issue in the commercial. Women were expected to speak
properly as they’re obligated to socialize their children. And while females were depicted as “talking too much”, man in the commercial seemed uncommunicative.
IV. Youtube
Youtube, known for its interactive character, is created in 2005. It expands the life of TV commercial. It also encourages people to adapt the existing videos. Here are some examples.
V. Comments
One of the most iconic feature of Youtube is that it allows user to post comment on the video. Some claimed that YouTube’s
comment section is the most “loud” and "dumb" corner online. Majority of the comments are
short, positive and relative formulaic.
However, some of comments still wroth our discussion. Following is a comment posted by the same user. Watch the different language she used.
SciencNerd11
However, some of comments still wroth our discussion. Following is a comment posted by the same user. Watch the different language she used.
SciencNerd11
lol … i---
> i do
!! att
----- > all the time iif --- > if it is fun lol.
SciencNerd11
unclejimbo, I completely disagree, but you
can parent you children that that, with abuses of smacking and physical
attacking, and politely be pumpled in to the state prison for child
abuse!
When she is arguing with another user, she shifts to a relative more formal and standard English in order to make a point.
Here's another example.
ometta7
IT’S NOT FUNNY!! In
ten years that is how people will talk. It will either start in America or
Japan, and the kids will talk like that using their vocal apparatus! Teacher will be forced to teach strange new language……
ometta7
Man… I really don’t give a shit
anymore… So stfu smf, ysaslf
When he lost an argument, he change into a relative non-standard English in order to make himself more aggressive.
VI. Conclusion
“verbal art is a form of creative
metalinguistic play with the power to affect social reality.”
There is a direct connection
between the ad’s poetic deployment of texting and the critical discussion about
texting language they have occasioned.
"the verbal ingenuity associated with texting—and talking text—should
be viewed not as evidence of linguistic decline, but rather in terms of the reflexive,
metalinguistic, sophistication it necessarily presupposes and potentially promotes."
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