HOME and LOVE in the digital age

When Family and Love Matter
Towards the celebration of Vietnamese Family Day June 28, on the morning of June 23, 2025, with the permission of the Trade Union of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, the Trade Union of the Institute of Journalism and Communication organized a seminar: "FAMILY stories, LOVE stories in the digital age". The program was attended by MSc. Vu Thi Thu Hang - Standing Member of the School's Trade Union, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thuy Hang - President of the Institute's Trade Union, and Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen - Deputy Director of the Institute of Journalism and Communication along with many lecturers, students and trainees of the School. The two speakers of the program were Dr. Khuat Thu Hong - Director of the Institute for Social Development Studies (ISDS) and Dr. Nguyen Kieu Nga - Lecturer of the Institute of Journalism and Communication. With deep expertise in the fields of sociology, psychology and communication, the two speakers brought a warm, open and thoughtful atmosphere, with in-depth perspectives, attracting the attention of staff, lecturers, trainees and students. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen - Deputy Director of the Institute of Journalism and Communication - emphasized the irreplaceable role of "family and love" in everyone's life.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen also cleverly puts the “breath of the digital age” into the story of modern love, where technology infiltrates every moment, every relationship – both bringing convenience and posing new challenges.

“Home and Love are eternal issues of humanity, appearing in poetry, literature, art – especially in journalism and media. And above all, they are our own daily stories.” Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen confided.
Ms. Vu Thi Thu Hang - Standing Member of the School's Trade Union shared: "The stories shared are small, but they have great meaning. In the era of technological development, family relationships seem to be somewhat looser. If we do not know how to connect and nurture them, the family will lose its inherent cohesiveness."

Love cannot be a natural thing.
From the perspective of a sociologist, Dr. Khuat Thu Hong has provided in-depth analysis of changes in emotional life and modern family structure. In the digital age, when people tend to turn to smart devices more than direct dialogue, the values ​​of love, understanding, and sharing are gradually cracking.
She warns that technology is not the cause of distance, but how we choose to use technology determines the quality of our relationships. “Many people are unintentionally using technology as an excuse to ignore the familiar things around them.”

Dr. Khuat Thu Hong emphasized: “Each of us is a member of a family: it can be a complete family, a broken family, a family of the same sex – the trend. But we all need to share, understand and love.” “Love is an instinct, but learning how to love – learning how to understand, listen, and tolerate – is courage.”
Love, she believes, does not come naturally. It needs to be cultivated and practiced like any other skill – especially in an age where sincere expressions of care can easily be “missed” amid the sea of ​​notifications, messages, and the hustle and bustle of digital life.
“Ignore” – a painful keyword
Dr. Nguyen Kieu Nga – Lecturer at the Institute of Journalism and Communication – brought to the sharing session a combination of academic meaning and psychological experience, accompanied by profound figures and quotes. In her speech, she noted: “Many times we are victims of the indifference of our own spouse, of a colleague… But perhaps we forget that we ourselves are also the cause of another indifference.”
According to her, modern humans are gradually “technifying” indifference: we use technology as a reasonable excuse to avoid emotional interactions. Short messages, conversationless meals, and “burying ourselves in the screen” are manifestations of the forgotten values ​​of intimacy.

Dr. Nguyen Kieu Nga has opened up small healings through the activities Deeply Listening to Moments or “Pink Heart”, where each person gives a message of love to their loved ones.

 

The sharing session was a place where emotions intersected from calmness to laughter, from empathy to tears. The speakers, guests, and students told very personal stories, but they turned out to be very common – about love, about distance, about companionship and forgetting.

No need for grand declarations, just a few quiet moments are enough for each person to touch on important things. From everyday stories to academic arguments, all lead to one thing: technology does not destroy the values ​​of family and love, if people know how to use it as a bridge instead of a barrier.
In the world of “digitalizing” every corner of life, the problem is not technology, but how each person chooses to live with it – indifferent or complete, distant or companionate. And there, family and love stories still need to be preserved as a fundamental value – soft enough to move, strong enough to connect. Holding in the hands of today’s young generation is both technology and emotions. Preserving family and love stories is preserving the foundation for a humane society.