Social Networking

      Social networking has been both a blessing and a curse to internet users. Social networking, especially in the business I have decided to pursue, broadcasting, is essential to building connections amongst large numbers of people in any public sphere. Its a tremendous way to connect with other people in your community, and to stay connected with those people,many of whom will eventually help you achieve goals that would be impossible without such a tool.

     Social networking has been a big plus in the advertising community. Through websites such a Facebook, advertisers can pinpoint the exact communites and people that would be interested in buying their product. (known as Target Marketing) It has also been a huge advantage to politicians looking to gain that political edge. I can tell you first hand, signing up for a "free" bumper sticker comes with at least ten different daily e-mails reminding me to donate to a campaign or get out and vote. As David Carr writes, "As a result, when he arrives at 1600 Pennsylvania, Mr. Obama will have not just a political base, but a database, millions of names of supporters who can be engaged almost instantly. And there’s every reason to believe that he will use the network not just to campaign, but to govern." (Carr, How Obama Tapped Into Social Networks' Power) 

     The positives of social networking can also translate into negatives. For instance, when a person uses the internet and signs up for things or registers to select websites, they are giving up their freedom to privacy more than ever. The eye of "big brother" has never been bigger. Its safe to say that the average person is probably on at least ten different mailing-lists or big-corporate survey. Just recently, I was asked to drive to a local Marriot for a "huge job opportunity." The gentleman that asked me found me on Facebook and, through a scan conducted by his company, found I would be a likely candidate to enter into this corporate pyramid. After I quickly realized it was a scam, the same gentleman had contacted many of my friends as well. All of us, because of our affiliation with something we had done and/or purchased in the past, almost got duped into buying into a pyramid scheme that we would have never gotten out of. Marc Parry describes in his article, Who Cares About Facebook Privacy? Students Do, "The authors speculate that the increased privacy interest could come from public attention devoted to the subject, from more changes in Facebook’s default settings, or from prompts that Facebook shows users." (Parry) 

     It seems to me that social networking will continue to grow because most people are willing to give up their freedoms of privacy in order to get ahead in life, or even to just receive their fifteen minutes of fame.