Technically, social networks are nothing but a series of 0's and 1's on a server farm, probably located in Southern California; but to most, social networks are places created by individuals, sharing what they want, when they want, with who they want. Often times, social networks help friends or family stay in contact and updated on each others lives. Other times, social networks provide an easy way for anyone to meet, stalk or even harass.
People thrive for attention and approval, while maintaining curiosity of others lives. The social networking site, Facebook, allows members to view everything their friends post. This may include where that person is, what they are doing, pictures of last nights drunken escapades,or even who they are doing. In effect, Facebook seems to be a weird spin-off version or enabler of the Slambook. The Slambook was intended to be for questions, answers, and opinions but instead resulted in students writing hateful insults towards one another (Westlake 24-25).
For those looking for approval and rewards, FourSquare may be their social networking poison. Who doesn't want their friends to know what their exact location is? The newer social networking updates seem to be making it easier and easier for stalking, and potentially making it seem normal. An answer given to a survey done by E.J. Westlake included an answer of, "Facebook is the ultimate stalking tool. If I forget someone's name. . . I can look it up. I've used Facebook to get screen names, phone numbers. . . and even to see if a friend was still dating her boyfriend (33)." Though many social networking sites are used for innocent reasons such as those, the networks also act a a liaison between sexual predators/stalkers and innocent potential victims.
It was found on one social networking site, that users who were not even logged in may be looking at other users profiles and information. This posed a potential problem as future employers could now see the users drunken escapades from the night before or view the half naked photos 'accidentally' posted by an ex-boyfriend (Snyder 6-7).
Due to the way social networks "work", they depend on users and the user feedback. If the users do not approve of something, such as the Facebook news feed or privacy of Twitter, those in charge work to change the sites. While Myspace has fallen into the past, Facebook and Twitter are still going strong. These networks now allow users to control the privacy of just about every aspect of the account. This control allowed the user to change the way their information on the social network is viewed, even allowing the user to appear invisible to others until an okay is given.
For those looking to meet new people, stalk new people or interact with others in society, social networking has been a great success. For others looking to maintain contact with friends and family, but also stay protected from those they do not know, there is a way. Social networking has become dangerous in the past, so it has now been altered to meet everyone's needs.
Huberman, Bernardo A., Daniel M. Romero, and Fang Wu. "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter under the Microscope." 2008. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.
Snyder, Johnny/Carpenter, Donald/Slauson, Gayla Jo: MySpace.com. A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2), 2007. p 5-7. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.
Westlake, E.J. "Facebook: Friend Me If You Facebook. Generation Y and Performative Surveillance." p 22-35. 2008. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.
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Kayla when you state that people thrive off attention I completely agree with you. Part of me believes that this is why social networks are becoming more popular, because of the attention they are receiving. With social networking people post pictures of themselves to gain attention or to gain popularity. You make some great points in your blog but what is the one thing that you consider to be the real reason that social networks are used by people?
ReplyDeleteI believe that the most common reasons people use facebook is to show off what they have or what they are doing and vice versa, being able to see exactly what everyone else is doing. By comparing themselves to others, especially people from their past, many feel a boost of confidence.
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