Are Social Networks Evil?
This question came about during a conversation with a friend. Are social networks a phenomenon we should embrace without question, or a utility to be used judiciously?
Consider this – given that we are far more liberal in putting up our photos on social networks, anyone could take your photo and for all practical purposes present you in variations you may not totally agree with. Potential employers have also taken to social networks, albeit in a slightly different way – you can expect them scour through your Facebook profile to know you better.
This however is minor – the question we need to ask ourselves, is whether we are, as a society, becoming voyeuristic, (which is also a function of the internet as a medium)? Look at the increase in websites which showcase amateur pornography – the couple next door presenting their bedroom exploits online for all to see.
Blogs were probably the first instance where bloggers laid open their lives for all to read on their online journal. I remember coming across a post by a young girl about the problems with her stepmother in none too flattering a language.
Then came webcams, and Jennicam quite literally, laid bare, a young girl’s life for all to see. These however were both mediums which allowed the creator to decide what to display and what not to display to the public.
And now, make way for social networks, where popularity is defined by the number of people you have on your friends list, and thanks to the mini-feed feature that Facebook popularized, all we do, all our friends, do, all our friends say to us, or about us, is there for our whole network to know, whether or not we want it. Is that how we would want to live our lives?
It’s not that social networks are all bad – I have got back in touch with friends from as far back as school with whom I had totally lost contact. And I know instances where thanks to social networks, people have got back in touch with people and been able to organize reunions.
So much lies in how we use the tools we build – but then, in the words of McLuhan “We shape our tools and afterwards our tools shape us.”
So, what do you use social networks for?
Also read:
What Drives Online Content?
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- Facebook Crosses 350 Mln Users, To Remove Regional Networks
Filed under: Digital culture
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