Social Networking and Society

Since the advent of MySpace and Facebook, the term “social networking” has become ingrained into our vocabulary. With social networking sites a part of most people’s everyday activities, we have gained new insights into our world and how people interact with one another online. I know that personally, I use Facebook every day, unless I’m somewhere without an internet connection readily available – and even then, I can usually find WiFi somewhere and often end up going online. Recently during last finals week I opened up a Twitter account, since I’ll be going abroad for all of next year and a lot of my friends have Twitter, so I figured it would be an easier way to keep in touch with most of them than by Facebooking. I don’t tend to do many status updates on Facebook, and since Twitter is basically just updating statuses, I don’t tweet very often. From time to time I’ll check out what people are saying, but during the summer I don’t use my computer as often as I do at school, so it’s not very often. I also don’t have a Smart Phone, so I think that this plays into how often I use the Internet or social networking sites. My friends who have iPhones or Blackberries say that they can’t resist checking Facebook or e-mails from their phone, because they get alerts that tell them they have a new message/e-mail waiting for them and they feel like they need to answer it immediately. I’m getting an upgrade on my phone in August that will require me to get a Data Plan, so I feel like my media intake will definitely increase once I make the switch to a Smart Phone. I would say that I text a normal amount – most of the time I’m texting friends to make plans for the night or about something weird that I see at work or in line at Dunkin’ Donuts. Other than that, when I’m catching up with friends or relatives from other parts of the country, I primarily use Skype instead of texting, because it’s an easier way of catching up with people and having an actual conversation.

As much time as I think I spend on social networking sites, I would say that I spend less time on these websites in comparison to other people my age that I know, which is partly an intentional decision. For me the biggest negative drawback associated with social networking is the constant access or feeling of being “wired in” that comes with it. Browsing Twitter and Facebook is interesting, and I can spend hours doing it, but I also think there’s something to be said for disconnecting from the computer and going outside or spending time with people in person rather than communicating through technological means. I like being away from social networking sites/the Internet for a little bit each day – mostly because they’re so addicting that I’ll end up spending hours looking through photos on Facebook or seeing what P.Diddy or Chelsea Handler have been tweeting about. I hate the feeling of having the day slip away because I was online or watching TV all day, when I could have gone for a hike or to the beach with my friends. That said, however, Facebook is a great way to keep in touch with my friends from school or family that live far away, and it undoubtedly has helped me stay connected with people that I otherwise probably would have lost touch with.

I feel that the loss of privacy associated with social networking isn’t as much of an issue for me – if I decide to set up a Facebook account and share my photos and status updates with 500+ people, that’s my decision and any privacy loss that accompanies it is my own doing. I try to have my privacy settings on these sites pretty high, but I also don’t put anything on Facebook that I wouldn’t want my Grandma to see (mostly because my Grandma has a Facebook). Overall, I think that people should approach social networking sites and issues of privacy and constant access that accompany using them as something to complement social life, not replace it. Too much of anything isn’t particularly healthy or beneficial, so I think the key is to have balance. Social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook clearly provide important and helpful services, otherwise there would not be such a large segment of the population that uses them. However, when people get too invested in Facebook reality and make that their whole life, instead of the actual physical space around them, I think problems can potentially arise.