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Networking, as defined by my Mac's dictionary is 'to interact with other people to exchange information and develop contacts, especially to further one's career'. Now this would agree with the title statement. But to break the statement down further, here is what I think about networking.
It is clear that networking is a massive part in any business, and due to businesses evolving with technology it is no wonder the traditional methods of networking, such as seeing each other face-to-face or having group discussions in a meeting room, have probably decreased compared to 20 years ago. New technologies like e-mail and web-conferencing have pushed networking to be less social in the sense that people don't meet in person.
Personally, I would associate the term networking with businesses anyway, so to say that business has 'killed' networking I do not agree with. I would think all businesses use networking in one way or another as a strong relationship between the business and the clients is necessary for a successful year of trading. With these new technologies it saves time and money and therefore can result in a business to excel.
However, I can see why networking in person can be seen as a preferred method. It is easier to communicate and get the message across when face-to-face if a message needs to be conveyed and set solidly.
Besides from a business point-of-view, networking can be between children in a classroom at school, a group of musicians at a concert or even between players on an online game. Examples all in everyday life situations. But with the gaming example, even communicating between peers that way means that it doesn't always have to be in person, or business-related for people to network.
So to summarise the title statement, I do not believe business has has killed networking because networking has never been essentially about human contact and to say that it is for the career orientated is true, but to call it solely for that purpose is an overstatement. Networking can be for anyone in any situation that involves any means of communication with a particular purpose - and that purpose is what has created the network.
