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98% of the reading that is completed in this class, what I read in Smarter Than
You Think was automatically connected towhat I personally do online
specifically within social media. Clive
Thompson states on page 220 “The status-update world, they say, is a parade of
narcissiscism-vapid, inward looking, and idiotic.” A majority of the world
views social media in this way, and I was completely over the negativity of
McChesney. Naturally, I began to challenge this statement with the positives of
social media that did not jump to labeling those who utilize it.
While I was reading
this section, I sat near another girl who was speaking to someone via skype.
She explained the graduate program she planned to pursue after graduation and
was summarizing her intense honors paper process. This girl was clearly
intelligent. After a few minutes of eavesdropping, she said she looked up her
future adviser on Facebook and said "she looks so cool". Then I
thought to myself, okay she's normal, and I'm not a failure at life. Social
media is just a way of further advancing your awareness about almost anything.
Wait. This makes me think of more
negativity. Sorry, guys. When does "further advancing your awareness"
go too far? Hours of Facebook creeping, that's when. Thompson states on page
231 "If you escape homophily, there's another danger to ambient awareness:
It can become simply too interesting or engaging." The girl that sat next
to me could have scanned her future adviser's profile for three hours for all I
know just because it was something new and exciting.
We all "creep" to some extent.
Addictions to such endeavors on the internet are rare, according to Thompson,
but they are growing. Intermittent reinforcement is what is known as checking,
re-checking, and triple checking certain feeds, and it can become a serious
problem. Personally, I think it would take a lot for a person to fall into the
category of an internet addict just because I see internet dependency as many
different levels.
Most of what I see is what Thompson
explains: people that are social on the internet are most likely social in
reality. Thompson states that the way to controlling the potential of reaching
a high level of internet dependency is to be mindful, which I completely agree
with. The other week I found myself becoming too emotionally invested (yes,
emotionally) in twitter, so I deleted my account. That was me being mindful of
my devotion to something that is not a complete reality. Half the things that
people say online would not be said in face to face conversation so it is not
worth getting hung up on. If that means completely unplugging yourself from
something, then do what Thompson says and be mindful! Take it out of your life
for a little while, and if you want it back, it'll still be there.
So my definite viewpoint on social media
in this light is uncertain as you can see. However, Thompson really makes it a
point to understand those who partake in social media and what they are using
it for before any conclusions are made.
Bethany I really appreciated this post, especially because you were able to say you weren't sure what to think about Thompson's points. I believe that internet addiction is a pretty scary thing and people can get way too absorbed in other people's lives than is necessary. I think people get really wrapped up in these online personas that we've forgotten that these people exist outside the internet.
ReplyDeleteBethany, this was a great post! I too find myself creeping on people and feel relief when I see others doing it as well. It is interesting to try and decipher Thompson's views on this an I too had a little trouble deciphering what side of the argument he is on. Overall great post!
ReplyDeleteI think for the most part, everyone has a little bit of "creep" in them when it comes to social media but I think it was set up to be that way. When I think about it, social media is just a way for me to share my life events with others and the way for them to see it is through "creeping". To touch upon your point of unplugging, I believe that you can unplug without discarding your profiles, per say. In my case, I wanted to unplug from facebook so I deleted it. After about 2 months without it, I realized that I really only want facebook for family purposes to keep in touch with those who live far away. So when I got back to it, I remained unplugged (kind of) and used it simply only to stay in touch with family. Although I feel like I am unplugged from the way I used to creep on facebook, I am not sure if I am really, completely unplugged. At the same time I feel like I am much less of a creeper on this social media. I don't know if anyone else feels the same way or has tried something similar but it is an interesting concept.
ReplyDeleteYou raise a very good point at being aware of when the advancing your awareness goes too far. This reminded me a lot of entering the college process and trying to find a roommate. When I had linked with people via the Ursinus Facebook page, I had looked through people's profiles to try and get a better sense of who I would be living with; however, how far back was too far? At a certain point, looking into people's pasts help to determine who they are now, but at a point, the past starts to become irrelevant, and that's the line that people need to know where to draw. If something on someone's Facebook is considered irrelevant, then why is it still on their Facebook? Is everything on someone's Facebook considered relevant? These are all the questions one must considered when "stalking" or advancing awareness about a subject, and inversely, this is something people should think about when they post information to social media because they may be judged the same way by others
ReplyDeleteThank you for all of your feedback everyone. I appreciate the responses. Chris, I see where you are coming from with "plugging back in" to Facebook. It really is a great way to keep in touch with people that are hard to talk to normally. I strongly believe that I will have Facebook well into adulthood because of this reason. It is just the matter of how you utilize social media which determines your level of dependency. With your case, you seem pretty socially healthy online with how you use social media. Lindsay, I did the same thing when finding a roommate for college. The girl I creeped on ended up being my roommate freshman year, and when I would bring up things I saw on facebook from years ago it was a super awkward situation. Then I had to admit to creeping on her excessively prior to meeting her.
ReplyDelete