Cussing Dinosaurs & Mental Rainbows

Thoughts, ideas, and happenings of my life.

Privacy: To Post or Not To Post

Privacy on the internet is not something that we as a generation should take lightly. However, every day we access the internet, we voluntarily give up information about ourselves to an unknown amount of people. One of the biggest ways we violate our own privacy on a daily basis is by using social networking sites like Facebook. To even create an account, one must give up demographic information and even some personal details that some would rather keep to themselves. The big question is, how do we decide how much of ourselves we want to display to the world?

                          


David Kirkpatrick, author of The Facebook Effect: The Inside Story of the Company that is Connecting the World, takes an in-depth look at how Facebook was created and where it is headed in the future. Facebook we created by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004 and since its introduction, the site has continued to grow at a substantial rate. Originally Facebook was intended only for students who attend Harvard University, however, by the end of 2004 the site grew to include students from other universities. By the end of 2008, Facebook was made available in 35 different languages and had become a global phenomenon.

                    

Daniel Solove wrote The Future of Reputation: Gossip, Rumor, and Privacy on the Internet in 2007. His book brings his legal perspective the idea of privacy on the internet. He makes some very great arguments by using real life examples that demonstrate how a person’s reputation can be destroyed by the fast paced world of the internet. He argues that privacy laws need to be update because privacy on the internet is no longer binary. Whether we like it or not, there is probably some sort of incriminating information about us on the internet.

All in all, these books both bring up good points about how we should use our privacy on the internet. Sites like Facebook are specifically created so that one cannot have separate identities. It forces us to blend all aspects of our lives into one digital network. Co-workers, family, and friends all have access to the same information which in turn is voluntarily provided by us. In conclusion, be careful of what you are willing to put on the internet. It could mean the difference between landing that sweet job or not. 

First Look

Katherine McKeon: Social Media Goes Green

Very interesting! I am currently doing my internship at a magazine which promotes living green in all aspects of your life. I was surprised to find out that there is a “green” version of Facebook. It is called Ozoshare. If your interested in joining the green movement and connecting with others that have the same green interests, you should check out Ozoshare.

katherinemckeon:

In this New York Times article, a new type of sustainability movement is discussed-one that involves the revolutionary powers of Facebook. A new app has been released that allows people to post their energy consumption levels to their Facebook page and challenge their friends to energy reduction…

May The Force Be With Music: Revolutions and Retweets: Social Networks in the revolution

I agree that social media can be used as a tool to motivate people to make a difference but in the same sense it is just that, a tool. There needs to be other ways in which people are joining forces together to change something than just clicking “like” or “re-tweet.” Thinking back to the days when protests and sit ins didn’t have the use of social media or even the internet for that matter, they still seemed to accomplish so much. When I think about the explosion of the KONY2012 video, I feel that most people who shared that video were slacktivists. They were just jumping on the bandwagon and probably forgot about the cause the next day.

maytheforcebewithmusic:

Along the lines of what we discussed in lecture, this article conveys a convincing argument that social networks are a useful tool in activism and social movements. This article refutes Malcolm Gladwell’s assertion that the next major revolution won’t be charted on a social network. Author…

Jenna Roy: How Facebook Complicates Dating

I believe that all social media can complicate a relationship. I’m guilty of looking at friends list and over analyzing relationships. I think everyone is, some are just more willing to admit it than others. However, I do think that social media can help maintain a relationship. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of people that are too lovey dovey over the internet. At a certain point it just comes off as fake. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen someone update their status with something like “I love my (insert relationship here). He/She is the best (insert relationship here) ever! I’m so luck!!” and then less than a week later their relationship mysteriously changes to “Single.” Which then prompts the update of “I’m single! Time to start living for myself.”

jroy9390:

Being Facebook friends with the person you are dating can complicate things. The article, “5 Ways Facebook Changed Dating (For the Worse)”, discusses how Facebook can have negative effects on user’s romantic life. The 5 ways Facebook is changing dating for the worse are:

1. Overanalyzing Will…

Internet Troll or Cyber Bully?

We all know that we should be mindful about what we post on the internet but recently an Arizona House Bill took it one step further. Arizona House Bill 2549 was originally introduced to update the state’s telephone harassment law as this article from DailyTech.com points out. The new bill purposed that it is a crime to offend, annoy, or harass individuals on the internet and offenders should receive a jail sentence for doing so. As this video from SourceFed points out, the bill could help with cyber bullying but is kind of ridiculous and may need a few revisions before it actually passes.

As the article from DailyTech.com states, legislators haven’t completely given up on the bill. They are in the process of changing the bill so it doesn’t cause quite a stir among the public and privacy groups that exist. As we’ve talked about in class, privacy is a big issue when it comes to the internet. There have been stories of kids getting kicked out of school for posting offensive things on Twitter or Facebook. I feel that there does need to be something done about cyber bullying, but I don’t think House Bill 2549 is the right step.

I think it does bring up some good questions though, like what can we do to stop cyber bullying? Should there be some sort of punishment for it? It seems to me that trying to control cyber bullying on the internet would quickly become a very time consuming past. Some areas, like Facebook, would be easier to control because it requires you to use a name, however there is always the possibility of creating a false identity.

I think Arizona is trying to make the next step happen but not going about it in the right way. I’ll be interested to see what kind of revisions are made to this bill and if it will actually become a law at some point. What do you think? Is there a better way to control cyber bullying on sites like Facebook or Twitter?

Your “Likes” and “Favorites” Only Go So Far

With so many different social media outlets, becoming a digital activist is just a mouse click away. This article from nytimes.com discusses limits that come with being an activist in the digital world. The author poses this question “if you ‘like’ something, does that mean you care about it?”

 In the article it discusses some of the recent trends that have exploded in this digital age. For example, #KONY2012 spread pretty rapidly on both Facebook and Twitter. I remember discusses this video with a co-worker of mine. The conversation went something like this:

 Co-worker: Have you seen this KONY video?

Me: What are you talking about?

Co-worker: This video that’s been all over my Facebook feed about that Ugandan ware criminal.

Me: Yeah, I have no idea what you are talking about.

By the end of the day, I knew exactly what he was talking about. All of sudden my Facebook and Twitter feeds were blowing up with KONY 2012. I’m pretty sure half of the people who re-posted the video did it just because everyone else was doing it. In my opinion, that doesn’t make you an activist. To be one you need to really know what is going on with the issue.

Another recent example of digital activism was Stop SOPA. Many websites participated in a black out in support of stopping the Stop Online Privacy Act bill that was introduced into the House on October  26, 2011. Because of the backlash it received, the House Judiciary Committee postponed SOPA legislation until a better solution can be reached. In all, I think we all need to think about the issues that we are getting behind to support. I leave you with this quote from the article:

“I saw this thing, it spoke to me for at least one second, and here is my mark to prove it.”

Untitled: the social media challenge

Very interesting article. Personally I have never taken a break from all social media outlets. However, I go days with out check one site or another. For me, social media is all about how you use it. There are ways to have meaningful conversations via Facebook or any other outlet and ways to stay out of the public eye. On the other hand, I don’t think it replaces face to face communication.

ktellian:

Could you disconnect from social media for two weeks?? In this article from mashable.com, it talks about five individuals who agreed to cease using social media applications. After reading this article and comparing it to some of the things that I have noticed from my cease of social media…

All dressed in LOVE ♥: Social Media & Natural Disasters

I agree that social media can be a great tool to use in the event of a natural disaster. Not only does it allow someone to send well wishes to those affected but it can also provide a tool to raise money or even form a group to send relief.

fashionhasit:

This Article, speaks volumes. It is so amazing to hear or find new ways in which social media evokes social change. I have never experienced a natural disaster before, I’ve just seen the after effects on T.V and online and the emotion I felt is unexplainable! So to see a staff of individuals…

MCO 435: Police tell Twitter that missing girl is safe before telling mom

First of all, I can’t even believe this story! Second of all, I’m surprised there isn’t a lawsuit about this. I agree that people need to be more conscious of what they are posting on Twitter and other social media sites. This is a perfect example of a conversation that should be saved for a face to face interaction.

jaywill22:

The article I read was about how a U.K. police force recently found a missing girl and instead of telling the girls mother first that they had found her, they tweeted it. Now, when I began to read this I was already shaking my head as to why something like this would even happen the way it did….

(Source: CNET)