Facebook has become a nation wide phenomenon. Everyone seems to have one and if you don’t, you are out of the loop. It’s a way to keep in contact with others, post pictures, send invitations for events, and creep out on someone you don’t even know. Everyone knows their profile will at some time or another be viewed by someone who they have never meet, and may never meet. So what you post to present yourself is very important because that’s the first, and maybe last, impression some people will ever get.
Irving Goffman says that internet allows us to play roles that we wouldn’t consider due to physical appearance. On Facebook however, photos play a big role. Each account has a profile picture and you and others can post pictures of you that everyone is able to see. Its not easy to pretend you look any different then you really do. You can however sensor it. I know that as soon as I see that pictures have been tagged of me, I screen them. If one of my friends thinks its funny to post a completely embarrassing picture I’m definitely going to untag it so at least my name isn’t attached to the picture. Most individuals try and post pictures of them at their best so they can come across as better looking than they might be. Being able to untag bad pictures allows me to at least moderate what outsiders can see of me at my worst.
If I am understanding the term ‘interactivity’ correct, then I think Facebook is extremely interactive. Each account has a place to write about yourself, your interests and activities, and what your favorite quotes books and movies are. Now there are even applications to show your favorite sports teams, what Disney princess you most relate too, and how you compare to others on facebook. I personally tried to answer those categories as completely honestly as possible. My friends wouldn’t let me live it down if I lied about something to come across as more attractive to others. I know lots of girls who say they are interested in sports or their favorite tv show is ESPN when really, they could care less and they write that because they assume its attractive to other males. In my opinion there is no point in lying about that because you want someone to like you for who you are not who you present yourself to be.
As honest as anyone is, I think everyone, including myself, tries to highlight the best characteristics and limit the not as desirable ones. I would never post online to the whole world what flaws I have or what may not be attractive. People can find those out on their own! I think that in the long run, Facebook and Myspace accounts are created with the idea that you want others to be attracted to you (whether social, or physically). They allow you to present your best self to the world. People can alter themselves to be better or worse, I just don’t see the point of completely fabricating who you are.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Blog Two: So Much Cooler Online
Brad Paisley is always writing comical lyrics to country music. The song “So Much Cooler Online” is no different then his others. The story line is of a pizza delivery guy who creates an alter-ego through a Myspace account. Myspace, Facebook, and other online networking websites have become a lot more popular and Brad is the first one to make a song out of it!
The main character has two personalities. One is an online personality and one is offline. The off line character is what you would think of as your typical ‘loser’. He lives at home with his parents in the basement. He relies on his mom to make him snacks and to take care of him but is old enough to be moved out and moved on. The off line character obviously has little experience (I’m assuming) and little confidence when it comes to women. He has a crush on his neighbor but shys away at opportunities to see her or talk to her.
He overcomes all these insecurities with his online character. His online character has all the attributes he assumes someone who is desirable would have. He is tall, handsome, has six pack abs and the looks and attributes of a “GQ” model. This character is rich and lives in Hollywood. He drives a nice car and obviously makes enough money to enjoy the finer things in life, including beautiful women.
This music video assumes that everyone online lies about who they are. Whether its their looks, job, personality or whatever it might be, people can exaggerate or embellish their true selves. There really isn’t a way to know if someone is lying to you over the internet. A lot of people these days are turning to online dating services and they put a lot of trust in individuals they have never seen in person. I think that people are able to self disclose more than they would in a face to face relationship and get past insecurities they might have on first dates when their first date is on the internet. The internet provides individuals with a way to get to know others without having to spend awkward first dates or meetings together.
I guess I’m the sort of person that wants to find the good in everyone so I don’t think that as many people lie about themselves online as others may assume. It doesn’t make sense to me to lie about something if you are planning on meeting the person you meet online, face to face. But on the other hand, if you plan to keep your friendship in cyberspace there are no limits to what you could make up!
The main character has two personalities. One is an online personality and one is offline. The off line character is what you would think of as your typical ‘loser’. He lives at home with his parents in the basement. He relies on his mom to make him snacks and to take care of him but is old enough to be moved out and moved on. The off line character obviously has little experience (I’m assuming) and little confidence when it comes to women. He has a crush on his neighbor but shys away at opportunities to see her or talk to her.
He overcomes all these insecurities with his online character. His online character has all the attributes he assumes someone who is desirable would have. He is tall, handsome, has six pack abs and the looks and attributes of a “GQ” model. This character is rich and lives in Hollywood. He drives a nice car and obviously makes enough money to enjoy the finer things in life, including beautiful women.
This music video assumes that everyone online lies about who they are. Whether its their looks, job, personality or whatever it might be, people can exaggerate or embellish their true selves. There really isn’t a way to know if someone is lying to you over the internet. A lot of people these days are turning to online dating services and they put a lot of trust in individuals they have never seen in person. I think that people are able to self disclose more than they would in a face to face relationship and get past insecurities they might have on first dates when their first date is on the internet. The internet provides individuals with a way to get to know others without having to spend awkward first dates or meetings together.
I guess I’m the sort of person that wants to find the good in everyone so I don’t think that as many people lie about themselves online as others may assume. It doesn’t make sense to me to lie about something if you are planning on meeting the person you meet online, face to face. But on the other hand, if you plan to keep your friendship in cyberspace there are no limits to what you could make up!
Monday, January 14, 2008
Assignment Number One: Internet Abstinence
Abstaining from the internet was so much harder than I imagined it could be. I wasn’t aware how often I’d sit down at my desk and get on the internet even if for just a few seconds. This assignment was more frustrating than I thought it would be!
Within the first two hours of my twenty-four hour period of abstinence I fell off the wagon and checked Facebook. I did it purely out of habit and had to start my twenty-four hour period all over again. I actually unplugged my internet and turned off wireless so I wouldn’t be tempted again.
Abstaining from the internet effected my communication but not drastically. The main reason I use the internet is to use Facebook, download music, and research random topics of interest such as traveling. I regularly chat with my roommates online even if we are just rooms away. So I think I increased the amount of exercise I got because I was walking to and from rooms and up and down stairs rather than sending an instant message. I don’t email that often unless it is to a professor and since it was the first week of school it was easy to avoid that. Avoiding using Facebook to communicate with friends and classmates was more difficult then imagined. I had one friend ask me why I hadn’t responded to his Facebook message yet and it was only twenty-four hours! It is strange to think about how much college students have come to rely on the internet to communicate with each other.
To replace the amount of time I waste on the internet each day I found myself engaging in a lot more face-to-face communication even if it was just with my roommates. I don’t usually spend continual time on the internet, its just five minutes here and five minutes there. So abstaining didn’t give me much extra time to find anything more productive to do with my time. I found myself doing other things on my computer that didn’t require the internet such as browsing music and photos. I also found myself writing notes and reminders of things I wanted to look up when I was able to go back on the internet. I’m currently planning a long period of traveling and it was hard to not be able to look up questions I had.
I think it would be interesting to see how abstaining from the internet for a whole week would effect my communication. Twenty-four hours is a reasonable amount of time to avoid the internet but it might make a bigger impact if I was to avoid it for that much longer. I have ‘given up’ Facebook for periods of time before and I always end up creating a new account all over again when I feel like I have missed out on too much! Right now I feel like my age group is centered around cites like Myspace and Facebook and less on email and other forms of CMC. Maybe once I move on from college I will rely more on emailing to keep in contact and communicate.
Within the first two hours of my twenty-four hour period of abstinence I fell off the wagon and checked Facebook. I did it purely out of habit and had to start my twenty-four hour period all over again. I actually unplugged my internet and turned off wireless so I wouldn’t be tempted again.
Abstaining from the internet effected my communication but not drastically. The main reason I use the internet is to use Facebook, download music, and research random topics of interest such as traveling. I regularly chat with my roommates online even if we are just rooms away. So I think I increased the amount of exercise I got because I was walking to and from rooms and up and down stairs rather than sending an instant message. I don’t email that often unless it is to a professor and since it was the first week of school it was easy to avoid that. Avoiding using Facebook to communicate with friends and classmates was more difficult then imagined. I had one friend ask me why I hadn’t responded to his Facebook message yet and it was only twenty-four hours! It is strange to think about how much college students have come to rely on the internet to communicate with each other.
To replace the amount of time I waste on the internet each day I found myself engaging in a lot more face-to-face communication even if it was just with my roommates. I don’t usually spend continual time on the internet, its just five minutes here and five minutes there. So abstaining didn’t give me much extra time to find anything more productive to do with my time. I found myself doing other things on my computer that didn’t require the internet such as browsing music and photos. I also found myself writing notes and reminders of things I wanted to look up when I was able to go back on the internet. I’m currently planning a long period of traveling and it was hard to not be able to look up questions I had.
I think it would be interesting to see how abstaining from the internet for a whole week would effect my communication. Twenty-four hours is a reasonable amount of time to avoid the internet but it might make a bigger impact if I was to avoid it for that much longer. I have ‘given up’ Facebook for periods of time before and I always end up creating a new account all over again when I feel like I have missed out on too much! Right now I feel like my age group is centered around cites like Myspace and Facebook and less on email and other forms of CMC. Maybe once I move on from college I will rely more on emailing to keep in contact and communicate.
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