Issue #2. Email may no longer be relevant.

Many online news websites love to use headlines suggesting certain events may happen such as "Economy may worsen," or "Apple pie diet may lead to death, scientists claim". But if it may happen, it also may not. For researchers to speculate that email use may soon come to an end is akin to suggestions in the past that all libraries would close with the invention of the internet or that all work normally done on paper would now be done on computers. Instant messaging may be easy and quick, but generally not enough information can be conveyed through this medium to allow for meaningful communication.

If email is as Stephen Leahy suggests easy to misinterpret, then instant messaging or texting must be doubly so due to the lack of character spaces allowed. In my opinion communicating through email is the most efficient way of communicating to others in a business environment. This is due to several factors, the first being that emailing is audience centered in ways that other mediums are not; email is typically read only when the intended audience wants to read it. Postal mail delivery time is determined by the sender, and instant messages usually appear to the recipient as soon as they are sent. Email however, can be read at the leisure of the recipient. Additionally, email allows for a distinct subject line explaining the contents of the messages something that is not always present in an instant message or postal mail. Leahy's assertions do not necessarily support my view, but the article also does not state how often messages in other mediums are misinterpreted.

Leahy suggests that most senders of email write from their own perspective, and may hear their message in their head as they are typing it. Sometimes however according to Leahy, what they hear does not always translate to what the audience receives and how they understand it. By pointing out this flaw, Leahy is suggesting that audience centered communication may be a way to engage in communication that is more easily understood. If you enjoy humor or sarcasm with your intended audience, include some in your message but separate it from other more serious information to make the intended humor more obvious. If the message is business related, it is a good idea to be concise and refrain from sarcasm or humor. Writing from the perspective of the audience may ensure the email is understood; of course it may not.