When I was a teenager, before MySpace came about, instant
messaging was the main form of communication I used to keep in contact with my
friends. My cell phone was pre-paid (as were most of my friends’) so texting
was out of the question and there were only so many people you could talk to on
the phone. After MySpace became popular, I frequented that social networking
website to communicate with my friends. The support I received was almost always
positive because the people I was communicating with online were the same
people I was communicating with offline.
I believe if our actions are examined online, it makes us
more accountable for our actions. There have been plenty of incidents where
adolescents create videos of themselves fighting, hazing, or harassing others. These
videos become viral and often end up on national television news channels. Therefore,
instead of school officials, your parents, and your fellow students examining
your actions, the entire nation is.
Online social communities are available for almost niches. However,
this means that whatever group you belong to, there is an opposite group
available online as well. For instance, there are both pro-anorexia websites
and anti-anorexia websites. As long as these groups can stay within themselves
and don’t produce flame wars, the Internet can be a great place for diversity.
Good thoughts! I agree with the accountability bit, though I did not write about it in my post. At the same time, accountability exists only when people are "really" who they are. Since we can pretend to be someone else, then accountability seems to be a little less easily "enforced." But that's just my opinion.
ReplyDeleteAnd in regards to flame wars--yeah, that is where it can get frustrating. It is like people want to see what "the other side" is up to, but then don't like it, so go "postal" on their site/comment logs etc. Which brings up an interesting question: is this more divisive of community, in general? Not looking for an answer--just a rhetorical thought.
You bring up a good point. Once anonymous, John Gabriel's Internet theory seems to come into play more often.
ReplyDelete