When I first graduated high school, I was excited to be able to finally mesh with the college world and create a facebook. Back in the day, facebook was only accessible to those who belonged to a college network. Nowadays, just about anybody, including my younger brother and my best friends mother are on facebook. Social networking sites and becoming more and more popular as technology and web 2.0 evolves. The question that comes us is it it affecting the way we communicate with others? Are we loosing the personal touch of communication to the internet?
The big issue is the digital divide. Although more and more people are becoming accustomed to the internet and using it more in their daily routines, there are those generations and people classified as "laggards" that do not wish or can not use the internet. The internet is a very complex medium, but with constant evolving technology, it is easier to use and friendly to those that are computer illiterate.
Bugeja argues that social networking sites are almost like death to interpersonal communication. He believes it is the evil source that is hurting face to face communication. He also states that people are so engulfing in new media and web 2.0 that they begin to confuse it with real life. Where does reality and virtual media meet and end? It is in our subconcious minds that we begin to forget how to interact and put aside the computers to live our every day life.
Facebook and other social networking website such as myspace and twitter are almost a routine in many peoples' days. Umbiquitous computing is something that I even do and don't realize. As I am blogging, I have my facebook page open on a seperate tab, and getting twitter updates sent to my phone via text message. All these different mediums are part of my life and routine, and when I don't get to check my facebook at least once a day, I get anxiety. Luckily, my blackberry phone has facebook access so I can get my fix though that. Sadly, I realize how reliant I am on technology and how badly it affects my life.
I sometimes can't get to an assignment from school because I am so engaged in the different types of social networking sites , I let it subconciously take over and get in front my real obligations. However, I choose to stay on these sites so it's my fault if I don't get one of my responsibilites done. Facebook to me lets me stay in touch with all my friends that went out of state for school and keep up with them all. I don't use it to meet new people because I already have such a steady group of friends. We all share pictures, laughs and memories through it. My facebook alone has over 1500 pictures, and I wouldn't dare get rid of mine because of the thought of loosing all of those memories. Virtual picture book that would cost me hundreds to get them printed, so I leave them online :)
Social networking sites enable people to connect, make relationships and also ruin them. Those who feel they need facebook or what not to communicate feel it is easier to talk than in person. I prefer interacting face to face, and later commenting on facebook. As technology excels, we will be seeing more and more sites like these and influential people using them to get their word out. Instead of advertisements, they could do word of mouth, but more like word of facebook to get their message to others.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I couldn't relate to you more on this blog. I agree with Bugeja's article on how new media technology such as facebook and other "chat" sites are ruining personal relationships. I don't believe that it necessarily sets people back from talking face to face but it defineatly makes it so easy people just get addicted to it. One of my best friends is over in Iraq and he had a facebook account set up but none of his messages would go through so I found out from his family that I had to write letters. That was weird for me because even with e-mail now a days its so easy to just type everything. Going back to the pen and paper letters was so much more time consuming but I think that it can be more meaningful because you took so much time to write a hand written letter. Relationships though on the web can be vulnerable, for instance facebook is the biggest thing now-a-days that I notice friends and couples getting in fights over. If a girl talks to a guy who's in a relationship then it causes unnecessary drama and conflict. Or another one like when we watched that YouTube video "25 things I hate most about Facebook", the whole relationship deal making it official on facebook is like putting a ring on a girls finger. Its almost like your in a big room with all of these people and just more gossip and more gossip even from pictures that you might not have even posted. Some social network sites are good I guess but they are so addicting to the public because they are so easy. All in all in the end you can't get real emotion and feeling of something that is read on the computer.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry that as soon as I was given my UMail account information I called my friend Ben who was telling me all about facebook and how it was only for college students and it was the greatest.. etc, and had him explain to me step by steo how to create a facebook account. Picking my classes for my first semester of college was the second order of business. Now facebook consumes so much of my time at work, sometimes in class, and even driving, because I have it available to me on my cell phone. I love the idea of social networking sites for the sake of staying in touch with friends or acquaintances who I don't hear or see often, but I think that it is crossing the line on its affects on relationships both online, and in reality.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree that it is easy to become addicted to facebook and its many benefits of keeping intouch with friends and family. A lot of times I have facebook up in an idle state just in case there is someone I want to chat with. It is funny to see in group study sessions that everyone in my group is logged into facebook. It is also funny that we chat with one another when we are just across the table. (We do this as a joke, because we are always talking while studying, or to keep parts of our conversations confidential.)
ReplyDeleteIn response to where does the virtual world and the real world split, I have to think about dreaming. Many people wake up in sweats or screaming because of a dream. It isn't physical but it causes physical responses. When we become attached to something it becomes a factor in our world that we depend on and respond to.
Katty, these are all 100% true observations. I also have facebook and twitter on my phone and check them about twice a day. When I first got these on my phone though I would check it more often. Social networking can enhance intrapersonal relationships in the "between" moments when we don't see our friends in person. However, if they are abused they can lessen people's abilities to interact with people. I mean we see this kind of thing all the time.
ReplyDeleteI have also gchatted, facebook chatted or texted someone in the same room... sometimes as a joke or sometimes because someone is telling me something confidential like you said.
Just today my 12-year-old sister wanted to tell me something in secret and so she decided to text me because we were in public... the funny thing is she was right next to me.