In today’s society social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Myspace are not only wildly popular but becoming a necessity to people of all ages. Youtube allows viewers to post and share videos where as the rise of blogs has been changing the way people express themselves. John Jantsh defines social media as, “The use of technology combined with social interaction to create or co create value.” With all of these new forms of social media, many people fear that people are losing their own identity and conforming to the cookie cutter profiles these sites require. I couldn’t disagree more.
With new technology comes more opportunities. The Internet world has grown rapidly in just the last few decades, back when my parents were growing up, the Internet did not even exist. Now lets think about that for a moment. Without the Internet there was no looking something up on Google or typing your papers. In order to do research a student would have to search through textbooks and then either hand write or write it on a typewriter. Think about all of the time wasted on searching for information. In today’s world we simply type into Google what we are looking for and more results than we know what to do with come up in a blink of an eye.
Now let’s consider social networking sites such as Facebook. Although there are some guidelines that must be followed, it in no way limits the way a person can express themselves. People can choose their friends, share photos, update their status, relationship status, and personal information. Facebook allows a person to share, as much or as little as they choose to, which I think is pretty cool. It is a way for people to keep up-to-date with what is going on in their friends lives. It is defiantly a way that people can extend their self.
In the Social Media article it explained how back in the 1970s when someone watched a T.V. show they viewed as offensive it was more difficult to voice their opinion. The viewer would be able to voice their opinion about the show with the people who were around them at the time but it would be challenging to go beyond that. The person could send a letter to the show, but that could take a long time to get a response, or more likely possibility, get not response. Thanks to social media today that same person could simply voice their opinion in a blog, or on a discussion board. This would allow others to respond and share their opinions and the information would be available for everyone to see. This is the publish than filter model that is different from in the more formal media such as the news and radio.
In the Digital Nation Video it examined how the rise of this new technology also created some problems. Children were now unable to focus their attention on something like reading a book, and could only learn through games. Other teenagers were experiencing an addiction to the Internet or computer games and College students found it nearly impossible to be disconnected at any moment. I believe that these problems are not as serious as the film has you believe. Too much of anything is bad. Of course it is not a good idea to expose children to computer, cell phones, and video games all day everyday! I believe that as long as parents monitor the use of these technologies the positive effects outweigh the negative. Young children should have serious restrictions to the amount of time they spend using technology so they will not form a dependence on it. I think schools should continue to teach using basics like reading books but honestly, if games help make learning fun why not include them in the curriculum? If the loss of personal space is what turns people away from technology, then that is just silly. The use of social media does not stop people from reflecting on their own. It is only an additional resource to use for collaboration.
It is confusing to the world about the effect technology is having, but that is just because it is new. A lot of people have a hard time adjusting to change, but change is a necessity to growth. I am sure many people were hesitant about automobiles replacing horse and carriages but think about how positively that change affected the world. With social media comes countless possibilities to extend ourselves more than we ever thought possible. So instead of running away from it, embrace it!
I forgot to include links to my sources so here they are!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.scribd.com/doc/26734456/‘ial-Media-Web-2•O
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/
I agree entirely with this post. Many people see a change and think of it as less intelligent because you no longer have to memorize things or focus on one thing at a time. In a way this could be true, but in today's world, why be good at memorizing when you don't need to be? There is no need to memorize things in a lot of jobs because a computer is right there to pull up Google. The same is true even for phone numbers- they are all programmed in your cell phone, which is accessible at all times, so the availability of all this information is convenient.
ReplyDeleteAlso, social networking like Facebook is whatever you want it to be. In a way, you lose your identity because people aren't getting quite the same experience of you as they would through face-to-face interaction. But that doesn't mean we've all disappeared and immersed ourselves completely in our Facebook profiles. Real relationships still exist, and in fact, Facebook makes it even easier to communicate and stay in touch more often than ever. Why run away from opportunities like this? Especially because this is the way the world is moving; there's no turning back now. Such tremendous advancements have been made in technology, the media, communication and so many other aspects of life that the world won't be retracing its steps anytime soon.
Like you said, too much of anything is bad. The Internet should be used in moderation, and this phenomenon is undoubtedly a change. Change is different, and you lose some but you definitely gain some too. The positive definitely outweighs the negative, just as the introduction of cars did. This is our society and our culture. It comes with some setbacks and many benefits and I would also encourage everyone to embrace it.
I agree with your post. The internet/ social media have made life infinitely easier for us al. Therefore, it is also easier to share information about ourselves online. I like what you said about parenting, though. Children only have privacy issues online and issues with internet addiction when their parents cannot control them. A good parent should limit the amount of time their child spends online and what websites are age-appropriate. Also, knowledge of how to be safe online is all you need to safeguard against privacy issues. Maybe this should be taught in school at a young age now.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with what Katie commented. Just because searching for information is easier now, doesn't mean that's a bad thing. Every major change in technology brings about a change in how we live our lives; the change is neither good or bad, it is simply a change for greater efficiency. We need to get used to this new way of life and adapt to it. Using Facebook as an extension of ourselves is part of this change.
You bring up good points, especially how technology has made information so much easier for us to access. Whether it's a credible source or not for academic work, I love the creation of Wikipedia as it puts a constantly updating information database at our fingertips for free. As news is made, it updates.
ReplyDeleteAs you said, too much of anything is bad, and I think the benefits are too much to throw away. Those massive multiplayer games (World of Warcraft) that create controversy by having kids waste away in front of a computer can be used to do things such as strengthen leadership abilities in a group or help people work together to achieve a common goal. I played a game like that for about 2 years in middle school. In an age where kids lack motivation using new tech has the potential to fill that gap.
And you're right: people ARE resistant to change, which is probably why our generation is so adept at using new technology while adults are not (and that's being generous).