From Classmates to Fishing Buddies: Exploring Friendship and Digital Communication


At the beginning of the school year, I met Ivan in one of my classes. We were grouped together for a couple of projects and ended up chatting before and after class. During one of those conversations, we realized we both liked fishing — mostly trout and bass — and decided to plan a trip sometime. That one trip turned into a few more over the semester, and we’ve built a decent friendship outside the classroom.

Looking at our relationship through Knapp’s Relational Model, I’d place it in the Intensifying stage. We moved beyond surface-level small talk into more consistent interaction — not necessarily deep personal sharing, but enough that we check in, make plans to hang out, and talk about things beyond school when we do meet up. Fishing has been a good way to build that connection naturally, without pressure.

Online communication has played a role in keeping this friendship going. We use messaging apps occasionally to plan meetups or share something quick, like a fishing report or a photo from a recent trip. It’s convenient and helps keep things organized, especially when we don’t see each other as often during busier parts of the semester. As McEwan (2015) observes, "Communication technology introduces flexibility into our networks through the reduced influence of time, geographic location, and local community on our ability to reach out to a vast potential of network connection" (p. 155). In this sense, digital communication has helped us maintain the relationship without needing to interact face-to-face constantly.

That said, our communication hasn’t relied heavily on digital platforms. We don’t talk all the time online — just enough to stay in touch and coordinate plans. But having those tools available has definitely helped the relationship continue to grow, especially when our schedules don’t line up for face-to-face conversations.

Overall, this friendship shows how online communication can support in-person connection without having to take over. The digital aspect makes staying in touch easier, but it’s really the shared experiences — like fishing trips — that have made the relationship meaningful.

Reference:

McEwan, B. (2015). Navigating new media networks: Understanding and managing communication challenges in a networked society. Lexington Books.

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