Millennial pause
The millennial pause is a barely perceptible pause that is present at the start of some recorded videos.[5][6][7][8] The practice of including such a pause is generally ascribed to millennials.[9][10][11] The phenomenon is an example of the digital generation gap between millennials and younger generations.[12][13]
Observation
The term is attributed to a millennial user of social media who posted a video pointing out that Taylor Swift, a millennial celebrity singer, includes such pauses at the start of her videos.[5][b] Videos by people other than millennials have also been described as exhibiting a millennial pause; Parade reported that celebrity singer JC Chasez included one in a video posted to a new social media account.[15][a]
Theory
It has been conjectured that the reason why older users tend to include a pause at the start of their videos is that they pause to make sure that the device they are using is actually recording before beginning to say anything, in contrast with younger users who are said to trust that the devices are working correctly, and begin speaking immediately after the recording begins.[5]
Alternatively, another theory for the prevalence of the pause amongst older users is that the habit was first adapted when using earlier recording devices, which took a split second to begin recording, and that although newer devices do not exhibit the same delay, the habit has proven hard to break.[16]
Awareness
Becoming aware of the phenomenon has caused some millennials to question whether they are becoming too old.[11] People have also noted that, once they have been made aware that their recordings include millennial pauses, they find their own habit embarrassing, but also have trouble breaking the habit.[16]
The millennial pause is considered one of a number of things common in what Kate Lindsay of The Atlantic called the "Millennial Internet Era", which also includes social media network Facebook and GIF files used as reactions.[12][13]
The phrase has been used untranslated outside of the anglosphere, including in Brazil,[17] Chile,[18] Denmark,[19] France,[20] Germany,[21] Italy,[13] the Netherlands,[22], Mexico,[23] and Spain.[24][c]
Notes
- ^ a b JC Chasez was born in 1976.[1] Definitions of "millennial" often include people born in the 1980s, but not those in the 1970s.[2][3][4]
- ^ The social media user actually used the phrase "millennial obligatory pause" in her video post.[14]
- ^ Spanish newspaper El País used a Spanish translation, calling it "la pausa millennial", though it also mentioned the English-language hashtag "#MillennialPause", and used the phrase untranslated in its English-language edition.[24][25]
See also
References
- ^ https://archive.today/20170916010924/http://www.biography.com/people/jc-chasez-21186437
- ^ https://archive.today/20220101220706/https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/millennial
- ^ https://archive.today/20170503235442/http://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/01/health/young-old-millennial-partner/index.html
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101220917/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/millennial
- ^ a b c https://archive.today/20220916215908/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/08/tiktok-gen-z-millennial-pause-parody/671069/
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055136/https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/millennial-pause-gen-z-debates/
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055408/https://www.gawker.com/celebrity/taylor-swifts-getting-funnier
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055356/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/29/tuesday-briefing-chinas-protesters-in-their-own-words
- ^ https://archive.today/20220822061522/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/what-is-a-millennial-pause-58ms7bg8c
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101063919/https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/12/karen-attiah-newsletter-birthday-grief-millennials/
- ^ a b https://archive.today/20221010065703/https://www.wired.com/story/growing-old-online/
- ^ a b https://archive.today/20221018232706/https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2022/10/the-end-of-a-millennial-internet-era/671779/
- ^ a b c https://archive.today/20230101055349/https://www.editorialedomani.it/tecnologia/web-il-declino-delle-gif-e-anche-quello-dei-millennial-wwmzlv50
- ^ https://archive.today/20221126130840/https://embedded.substack.com/p/the-millennial-pause
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055422/https://parade.com/news/nsync-jc-chasez-joins-tiktok-shows-off-new-hairstyle
- ^ a b https://archive.today/20230101055111/https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/people/arid-41014232.html
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055248/https://www.terra.com.br/vida-e-estilo/millennial-pause-e-o-novo-assunto-das-geracoes,95a6ed7a707829b9f919daac8565f83agplwr9ay.html
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101212328/https://www.infinita.cl/tendencias/2022/10/05/por-que-los-millennials-son-los-nuevos-dinosaurios-del-internet-y-como-la-gen-z-se-burla-de-ellos-2.html
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055345/https://underholdning.tv2.dk/2022-08-28-foer-stod-boomere-for-skud-men-nu-er-det-en-anden-generation
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101212553/https://www.konbini.com/popculture/mais-cest-quoi-la-millenial-pause-que-vous-faites-probablement-sans-vous-en-apercevoir/
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055244/https://rp-online.de/digitales/internet/millennial-pause-das-versteht-man-unter-dem-tiktok-begriff_aid-79978193
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055259/https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/er-zit-dus-een-seconde-tussen-camera-aan-en-praten-en-dat-is-de-millennial-pause~b7bc14e8/
- ^ https://archive.today/20230101055432/https://www.uic.mx/millennial-pause-que-delata-a-los-millennials-en-tiktok/
- ^ a b https://archive.today/20230100105104/https://elpais.com/eps/2022-09-30/los-millennials-son-los-nuevos-viejos-de-internet.html
- ^ https://archive.today/20221013102432/https://english.elpais.com/society/2022-10-03/why-millennials-are-the-new-online-dinosaurs.html