Along with other general types of communication, the body language has also being considered as one of the richest way to express human emotions. In some situation, it could even be selected as the best way for expression. In the textbook, there was a discussion about the importance of nonverbal cues which including the body language. The author suggested that there is a possibility for embarrassing communication to arise if no nonverbal expressions exist in our life. But this does not particularly refers to body language. For some reason, its position seemed to be challenged by other types of cues.
One reason could be the differences in understanding for different groups of people. Same as other types of expressions, the body language also has its cultural differences cross countries and areas. The assignment of meaning to the body movements is based on the culture's tradition. Therefore, the body language may not accurately reflect our actual emotion, and would cause a misunderstanding. The second reason is that some other nonverbal cues may be easier to be used in today's main communicating medias.
From my point of view, the body language played an major role in the old time, and it is necessary to use it in the modern times as well. Its special functions enriched our lifetime communication to avoid embarrassment in some situation. Although it seems that other nonverbal cues have taken more advantages in new medias like online-chat and email, body language still plays an important role, because people still have to have face-to-face communications.