Unfriended: Finding True Community in a Disconnected Culture

The greatest commandment is summarized to love God and love your neighbor. In Unfriended, Joe Battaglia provides a blueprint to share the love of God by joyfully and purposefully engaging in a loving community.
—Steve Fedyski, COO Pure Flix Entertainment
 
Information is a game changer and affects our choices. What if the road we initially imagined was taking us toward our desired destination of “community” was, in fact, taking us the opposite direction? Joe Battaglia’s book about social media and its impact on our deep longing for true community is a timely read.  
—Amy Grant, singer/songwriter
 
Once again Joe Battaglia has put pen to paper with Unfriended to explore another crucial piece of what makes us human. He studies an extremely complex issue that faces us today, one that has no simple answers. We all know the power of social media—the entire world of computers, smartphones, and little boxes that answer questions for us when called upon. Often lives are saved and true change is brought forth with their invention. But like so many things, there is a dark side to technological achievement that lingers and threatens. Are we capable of knowing where the line begins and ends in our reliance on it? Which, of course, leads to the greater question: Do we have the moral foundation to know where this line even is? The answer to this is yes! God has drawn that line quite clearly and placed it in each of our hearts. But what if we’re already “too far gone” by the very thing itself—by social media and its ability to disconnect as readily as connect—to reach within ourselves and know where to begin looking? This is all heavy stuff, but in the hands of Joe, a friend I will never “unfriend,” he lays it all out as only he can do in simple and easy servings that shed needed light.
—Corbin Bernsen, producer, director, and actor in L.A. Law, Major League, and Psych

What a timely book! What wisdom, insight, and clarity! And what a doable and necessary plan to change the world, or at least our part in it. Unfriended is a powerful, practical, necessary, and needed book. But more than that, Joe Battaglia is my friend who lives what he teaches. He’s the real deal, and one should always trust words from someone who does more than preach. Read this book and give it to everyone you know!

—Dr. Steve Brown, author, host of Key Life Radio Network

My friend, Joe Battaglia, aims squarely and hits the target in his new book Unfriended about what’s really at the core of much of our societal angst in a social media driven culture—the hunger in our hearts for real community. We’ve been looking for love in all the wrong places, and Joe points us back in the right direction to describe what we are all hard wired for—a meaningful relationship with God and each other.

—Rita Cosby, Emmy-winning TV and radio host, bestselling author

It seems like we’re angry all the time. And we’re losing our way in how to establish true relationships. My friend Joe Battaglia has written a beautiful book, Unfriended, that points us in the proper direction to restore true community in our ever-challenging time. Joe changes the way we look at the world—and ourselves.

—Mike Gallagher, host of The Mike Gallagher Show, Salem Radio Network, New York

Much of what we hear and see in our news today is about darkness, fear and disillusionment. Our world has become so distracted and disconnected, that we’ve lost our way in our relationships with each other. Some turn to social media to try to find hope, but a phone or a tablet is a poor substitute for another human being in your life who will bring you light and love. In Unfriended, my dear friend Joe Battaglia gently reminds us how vital true community is more now than ever, and offers some practical, and unique, insights into how we can recover what our hearts so desperately need. Read it for the good of your soul.

—Roma Downey, actor, producer, New York Times bestselling author

In Unfriended, Joe Battaglia gives us fresh insights into what really may be lacking in our culture today that has led to a loss of the true sense of community we once enjoyed. We need to regain what we’ve lost, and stop listening to the false prophets that have hijacked our national narrative of how we should think, feel, and respond to each other. This book will make you think. And it will speak to your heart as well. I highly recommend it!

—Kevin Sorbo, actor, producer, director

This is an important book. We are living in a day were we are more “connected” than ever yet more alone. True community is worth fighting for, and Joe shows us how to do it.

—Sheila Walsh, author, speaker

“Must read” is thrown around—a lot. But here I am using it very intentionally. You must read Unfriended if you are a parent of a child under eighteen, and you ought to read it if you or anyone you love is using social media, which is just about everyone. Joe Battaglia has penned a cri de coeur about the poisons that have escaped into our world via the new platforms for connecting but not communicating, the acid on the soul that accompanies every technological advance, and the desperately needed solutions to the online chaos surrounding each and every one of us. Whether you agree with me or “hate” me because of my positions on television, radio, or the web, trust me on this: Joe Battaglia, a son of immigrants, a long-serving, widely-admired marketing professional, and a sincerely devoted follower of Jesus has a word for you. A word you need as I did and as everyone does.

—Hugh Hewitt, a host with the Salem Radio Network and MSNBC, Washington Post columnist, New York Times bestselling author, and professor of Law at Chapman University Fowler School of Law

True community has never been more important than it is now, so I salute my dear friend Joe Battaglia for presciently assembling these tremendous reflections on that very subject. May we all read them with joy and become part of the solution to this supremely vital aspect of our lives.

—Eric Metaxas, New York Times bestselling author of Bonhoeffer, Miracles, If You Can Keep It, and Martin Luther

My dear friend, Joe Battaglia, is calling for true community and a connection with God in his new book, Unfriended. In a society that heavily depends on social media to build up self-esteem and develop relationships, his book is not only necessary, but urgent. I recommend everyone put down their phones and pick up this book. You will be changed!

—DeVon Franklin, producer and New York Times bestselling author

Joe, thanks for reminding us of the need for real, face-to-face community instead of superficial social media connections. Your practical, biblical insights are spot-on.

—Alex Kendrick, filmmaker of Fireproof, Courageous, and War Room

Joe Battaglia’s insights about the value we find when we get face to face and intersect with others will have you rethinking your social media time and reconnecting with those around you. Using research and reasoning, he shows us that stepping out of the anonymity of the social media world and stepping into the lives of others to find community is the only way healing, hope and purpose can be found and truly shared in our world. Joe’s writing is both thought-provoking and practical, guiding us in how we can “unfriend” to change not only our habits but also the way we approach each day. In Unfriended, he shows us how Jesus intended for us to live in community.

—Kim Crabill, founder and director of rosesandrainbows.org

In a culture geared toward self-absorption, Joe Battaglia offers an important reminder that God made us for one another. Unfriended will challenge you to show the same love and sacrifice for others that Jesus did for us!

—Janet Mefferd, host of Janet Mefferd Today and Janet Mefferd Live

In an era in which we have more tools than ever before to make us more “social,” humanity is remarkably the least social it has been in generations. Human beings were built for community, yet increased incivility and social chaos have made achieving true interaction increasingly difficult. Meanwhile, intolerance abounds. Joe Battaglia perfectly illustrates the problem and shows us what’s at stake if we don’t turn a corner—and fast. Truly an amazing book.

—Billy Hallowell, author of Fault Line and The Armageddon Code

In a world where friend has become a verb and being unfriended is little more than a click away, in his new book, Joe Battaglia shares with us how much real community means and how we can rebuild and maintain relationships with our neighbors, our friends, our family, and most importantly with God, our Creator. It is a wonderful trek through fond memories of how it used to be before the onslaught of social media and fake news, but Joe also offers real practical solutions about connecting one on one and about sharing a common bond that unites us more than divides us! You will enjoy reading this remarkable perspective on relationships and building true community!

—Jackelyn Viera Iloff, author of What If You Could? and Senior Advisor at Joel Osteen Ministries

Excerpt from the Foreword​:
Mr. Rogers asked a question at the beginning of his iconic children’s television program, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” It’s a simple song with a profound message—a message about community, about friendship. And it struck a chord with youngsters taking those first steps into building a social network.
But today Mr. Roger’s neighborhood is anything but sociable or friendly—thanks in large part to social media. We live in an age where our self-worth is determined by Facebook “likes” and Instagram “hearts.” Careers and friendships can be ended in 140 characters or less.
The social networks that were meant to bring us together, have in fact made us less sociable. We have become a nation in search of community. Joe Battaglia does a masterful job addressing these issues in Unfriended. And he puts us on the right path to finding true community. “Social media may establish a form of communication, but it cannot establish true community,” Joe tells us.
Unfriended is a deep dive into simple truths that can foster a community that will make a difference and impact lives for the Kingdom. Along the way, Joe compels us to “unfriend” bad habits that might set up roadblocks to building community—from scapegoating to political wrangling.
Joe’s book is not for the fainthearted. He tackles political correctness and the cultural morass that has infested our nation. And he challenges us to engage in a bit of spiritual soul searching. All that to say, Joe has crafted a terrific book that explores a fascinating topic—how to discover true community, true friendship by being Unfriended.
—Todd Starnes, Fox News