--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It comes down to a question of attention…" description: "\"It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult to use the Net distractedly, unlike the television or the radio.\" — Umberto Eco" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg" --- # It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult… ![“It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult to use the Net distractedly, unlike the television or the radio.” quote by Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg) > “It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult to use the Net distractedly, unlike the television or the radio.” [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Distinguishes between passive media consumption and active, focused internet use, highlighting the difficulty of staying attentive online **In simple terms:** Internet requires active focus unlike TV or radio Key Takeaway Cultivate focused attention when online Themes attention media digital literacy Mood analytical cautious Type educational critical When to use this quote - online research - educational platforms - social media use Key Concepts cognitive load distraction information overload Questions to Reflect On - How can you protect your focus online? - What strategies improve digital attention? A Different Perspective Digital environments are designed to fragment attention ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Radio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radio/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) ## Related quotes > [The constant attention is what is so difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-wood/the-constant-attention-is-what-is-so-difficult/) [Natalie Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-wood/) > [It's very difficult, I think, for people to be around you when you're getting lots of attention. It's very difficult for young people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/it-s-very-difficult-i-think-for-people-to-be-around-you-when-you-re/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I don't think poetry needs to be "easily understandable." 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Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Pain is meant to wake us up. People try to hide their pain. But they're wrong. Pain is something to carry, like a radio.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/pain-is-meant-to-wake-us-up-people-try-to-hide-their-pain-but-they-re/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) ## More by Umberto Eco > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Followers of the occult believe in only what they already know, and in those things that confirm what they have already learned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/followers-of-the-occult-believe-in-only-what-they-already-know-and-in/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“This has nothing to do with realism (even if it explains also realism). A completely real world can be constructed, in which asses fly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/this-has-nothing-to-do-with-realism-even-if-it-explains-also-realism/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“…there’s nothing in this world that demands more caution than the truth. To tell the truth is like leeching one’s own heart...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-s-nothing-in-this-world-that-demands-more-caution-than-the/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [The book is like the spoon, scissors, the hammer, the wheel. Once invented, it cannot be improved. 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Bad poets publish them, good poets burn them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/all-poets-write-bad-poetry-bad-poets-publish-them-good-poets-burn-them/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [There are four kinds of people in this world: cretins, fools, morons, and lunatics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-are-four-kinds-of-people-in-this-world-cretins-fools-morons-and/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) [Explore all 600 Umberto Eco quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. 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They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult to use the Net distractedly, unlike the television or the radio.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Umberto Eco" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention-it-s-difficult-to-use-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention-it-s-difficult-to-use-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/umberto-eco-313_attention_it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention_2089593.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It comes down to a question of attention: it's difficult to use the Net distractedly, unlike the television…” — Umberto Eco", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Umberto Eco", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It comes down to a question...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention-it-s-difficult-to-use-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/it-comes-down-to-a-question-of-attention-it-s-difficult-to-use-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```