By Alex Fitzpatrick2013-05-13 19:23:45 UTCYou know that shiny new iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy S4 in your pocket? You probably call it a cellphone, right? Well, Newt Gingrich says you're wrong.
Gingrich recently posted a three-minute video arguing modern cellphones shouldn't be called cellphones at all.
"Think about it," petitions Gingrich, who's been attempting to shape himself as a Republican thought leader on high-tech issues from moon colonies to flying cars. "If it's taking pictures, it's not a cellphone.
"If it has a McDonald's app to tell you where McDonald's is based on your GPS location, that's not a cellphone. If you can get Wikipedia or go to Google, that's not a cellphone."
What's curious is the fact that Gingrich does not acknowledge the word that's been widely accepted for modern mobile devices: "smartphone." When Mashable asked a Gingrich staffer to explain why Gingrich doesn't simply use "smartphone," we received the following response:
Because it's not a smarter way to make phone calls.
And it's not even primarily a phone anymore.
He is trying to say calling these devices smart phones is like calling a car a horseless carriage.
Point being a change of kind has occurred (not just an evolution) which we have just begun to understand — the potential and the implications.
Gingrich's larger point — that smartphones have changed the way we interact with one another, read the news and get work done — is undoubtedly accurate. But his way of making that argument is unquestionably bizzarre.
Either way, Gingrich is asking YouTube commenters for their suggestions on what to call modern cellphones. What advice would you give him? Share in the comments below.
Image via Matthew Cavanaugh/Getty Images
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