We’ve heard our whole lives that change is inevitable, and as college students, we definitely know this first hand. We change apartments nearly every year. We’ve seen relationships change. We’ve changed our major at least once. We change our clothes everyday (every other day for the ones who never had to do laundry before), and we have “change” permanently adhered to the soda spilled in our vehicles’ cup holders (Well I do, anyway). We’re old enough to realize the necessity of change, knowing that it is often for the better. After all, if it weren’t for change, we’d still have dial-up Internet and gigantic black flip-phones. If there is one thing that seems to perpetually change, it’s technology. Still, despite tremendous advances in social media networks on a seemingly daily basis, dissatisfaction overwhelms my Facebook newsfeed every time Mark Zuckerberg (who single-handedly executes every Facebook transformation, right?) implements another “improvement,” and reluctance abounds any time a new social networking medium emerges.
Technological improvements seem to have reached a tipping point. Though the goods and evils of technology have always been under scrutiny, the issue has more prominence than ever. While proponents of social media praise the connection of so many different people in distant regions, others criticize the way it isolates people from more personal interaction; while younger generations relish the opportunity to share their lives with others, older generations rant about its implications for privacy. As a self-professed social media geek and a long-time Siamese twin to my computer, I can see the validity in all of these arguments, many of which are inherent to any change in the social media world. Much of the time though, the anger dripping from the stati (which isn’t a word, but sounds so much better than “statuses”) regarding minor changes to Facebook’s layout have little to do with my peers wanting more privacy or their fear of machines taking over the world. At least, that’s what I gather from the pictures Amanda posted of her making out with a random guy at a bar…and that status Chris wrote about how cool it would be if machines took over the world.
Much like our Blackberries and iPhones, our Facebook profiles are yet another extension of ourselves. Perhaps it is due to our dependence on technology that any alteration to the interface to which we’ve become accustomed can send someone over the edge – as if they were put into effect for the sole reason of annoying the crap out of you (sentiments which you, of course, share by using, um, the same system that apparently “sucks”!). I guess if computer nerds can create viruses for the “fun” of it, this is possible. Me? I like to assume that geniueses at top-tier Internet companies have some idea of what they are doing. Weird, I know. As per my understanding of the inner-workings of websites like Facebook and Google, renovations go through multiple departments and are then added to the website by even more people. Given the typical uproar with each new version or many people’s aversion to new social media outlets (“Tweeting!?! Don’t I already put my status on Facebook!?! That’s all you can do? It’s called tweeting because bird sounds are OBNOXIOUS!” said the girl who became an avid Twitter user a year later.), what’s the point?
At Facebook’s annual F8 Conference, Mark (we’re on a first-name basis) introduced Timeline, which is basically still Facebook with a more user-friendly (for both the curator and viewer) layout. Mark emphasized the Timeline as your “home” – essentially the virtual story of your life. Its pleasant design and potential to include things about everything you’ve done, know, and love could make an ardent scrapbooker either cry in mourning for her lost art or promptly unsubscribe to JoAnne’s coupon e-mails. It is in part a response to Google+, of which many characteristics emulate Facebook while striving to give people a chance to start over in what may be considered a visually “clean” social networking site. The truth is, alongside whatever Miss-America-greeting-card-intentions the media moguls have for making the world a better place, they also want to have a niche in the social networking world, and–SHOCKER–make money (and you thought I was going to be blindly geeky and tell you that all of the paranoia was in your head. See? I am on your side), which I am not-so-uniquely qualified to say, because I am currently enrolled in a Special Topics class on social media.
The funding received from personal Facebook users is indirect, though, and will remain that way despite rumors of charging for their general services. The real Facebook consumers are companies that use the site to advertise or to market applications that are used in conjunction with Facebook. By encouraging more encompassing ways to share your interests, Facebook is also helping companies market to you. One advantageous aspect of this connectivity is that the marketing works both ways. Just as companies utilize profiles to reach their audience, so too can the audience use their profiles to reach companies. We can customize our profiles to scream “Hire me!” and inadvertently–or even directly –influence decisions they make about their products or services. From the ultra-professional LinkedIn to the sometimes shockingly personal Facebook and Twitter, this is an important part of their existence. Even within the confines they establish, you can take strides like adding only people you know on Google+ or not liking “Jersey Shore” on Facebook, to portray yourself as you wish.
While we may not have the option of ridding our Facebook home screen of the instant updates in the right hand corner (just give it a few months), we must not only realize that it was an attempt to separate the newsfeed items that could be seen as a nuisance from “top stories,” but also that we still have a lot of choices. We choose what to put on our profiles, and we choose which profiles to have. There are some other websites, like Spotify, and even some jobs which require you have a Facebook or Twitter – but there is not much use in trying to escape them all together. Whatever the privacy risks may be, the efficiency is too hard to resist, and the benefits are ample. Besides, nobody says that you HAVE to put naked baby pictures of yourself on your Timeline or tell everybody which public restroom you used last, but isn’t it kind of cool that the option is there?
Discrepancy is sure to emanate from any big change. A consensus upon the role of technology in our lives will forever be impeded by generation gaps (My mom just checked in at Red Lobster, so let’s make that BIG generation gaps), varying definitions of “privacy”, and how we choose to use it. You don’t have to start “planking” in every picture for the prospect of putting it on Facebook, but knowing how to use these types of sites and how to use it to your advantage is not without its rewards, this day in age.
Technology may be taking over the world, but who says it’s not one of those giant monster-scenarios in which it turns out that the “monster” has good intentions, but is just a little oversized and misunderstood? A lot of things just need a chance. After all, I rejected Twitter for about as long as I put off reading Twilight, and now I’m about to tattoo the fail-whale on my back and am coaching Team Jacob. Change is inevitable. The most you can do is try your best to combat the changes that could truly be detrimental (like with that eloquent status about how having “top friends” on Facebook chat ruined your week) and take the initiative to comprehend, and make the best of, the changes that you can’t prevent…until you become Mark Zuckerberg or Eric Schmidt, that is. Oh, and you probably should make those 21st birthday pics private, first.