What does Budgie represent

The author's unfavorable reference to budgies symbolizes Kate's disdain for the new media that is taking over how news is reported and consumed. She is a serious, hard-core investigative reporter who gets out of the office, talks face to face with people, and digs for clues to get her story. She refers to the young "online slaves" as almost as if they were caged creatures, doing their work without ever leaving their desks (4-5). She is forced to work with Joe and train him to be a good reporter, and although he at times shows promise, he still annoys her because he does not know how to relate to people and judge their moods. Even when he simply greets Kate good morning, the author writes, "he chirped like a friendly budgie (73) and often refers to his speech as chirping.