We live in a time when civil discourse and debate are a dying form of communication. Civil discourse is rarely civil these days, and it takes the form of social media monologues. What debate there is seems to be dominated by the extremists on the Left and the Right.

Let’s be honest. Too many of us rant and rave about the latest political misstep just to impress our mostly sycophantic followers and Facebook friends. The world is in dire need (or so we think) of hearing how we feel about things.  

So much for civil and so much for discourse.

The U.K. daily news outlet The Independent suggests that another factor has negatively affected the art of conversation. A study conducted in the United Kingdom found that Generation Z dislikes phone calls. The study shows that voice notes are the preferred way to communicate. Not voice mails. That would mean someone actually tried to call you but left a message instead. A voice note (or VN) is a short, asynchronous audio recording sent through messaging apps like WhatsApp or iMessage. It serves as a convenient alternative to typing, allowing users to express tone, emotion, and nuance—such as laughter or sarcasm—without the obligation of a live phone call. The UK study cites sources claiming that 9 billion voice notes are sent daily.

This monologic, one-way form of communication should concern us all. It reflects a total lack of care for a response to one’s (voice note) opinion and a complete obsession with being heard. 

Apparently, listening is so passé these days.

And that’s a problem for our current cultural moment. Recent events in Minnesota highlighted the death of dialogue. Everyone, regardless of which side of the issue they took, preferred to shout down and demonize the opposition rather than engage in a civil debate. Spewing vitriol, scapegoating, and impugning motives only added fuel to the fires of outrage.  

For our culture to survive, we must be willing to engage in vigorous public debate about these issues.  Such debate requires a willingness to listen to both sides of an issue.  I fear this latest obsession with voice notes is a sobering reminder that listening is not a virtue of this cultural moment.

And the death of dialogue may be the death of our way of life.