SOCIAL MEDIAOR SOCIAL DESTRUCTION?

The Pros and Cons of Interacting

Via the Internet

What is Social Networking? A web-based gathering place for friends,

family, businesses, musicians People can express and share their

interests, photographs, ideas and more Typical sites include:

User-created profiles (to display interests, activities and photographs)

The ability to find and add friends A messaging or commenting function to share opinions

Popular Social Networking Sites

Facebook Myspace Twitter LinkedIn deviantART Livejournal Tumblr

Digg Reddit Orkut

Social Networking Statistics

Social networking and blogging sites accounted for 17% (about one in every six minutes) of all time spent on the Internet in August 2009 - nearly three times as much as in 2008.

The popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Classmates.com more than quadrupled from 2005 to 2009

US advertisers spent an estimated $1.4 billion to place ads on social networking sites in 2008 and advertising expenditures are predicted to rise to $2.6 billion by 2012.

Teens spend an average of nine hours per week on social networking sites.

In 2006, 60 million Americans received help with major life issues (such as changing jobs, finding a new place to live, buying a car, and caring for someone with an illness) from people in their social networks.

A 2009 study found that 17.3% of middle school students have been victims of cyberbullying.

So, What Are The Positives?

Connect With Friends and Family

Sites such as Facebook, Classmates and MySpace are a powerful tool to stay in touch with family members and friends that may live across town, across the country or even across the world

Keep in contact with relatives and acquaintances; remain updated on upcoming events and special news in their lives

Share photographs and messages

Updating, Informing and Sharing

Share and promote ideas, news and grassroots campaigns

Social media can be a powerful tool for social change and an

effective alternative to conventional means of communication. During the protests of the Iranian election in June 2009, Twitter was the

main way through which protestors shared what they saw, reported what they heard and contacted each other for information.

Another example: the Obama presidential campaign relied heavily on social networking to spread their message and garner support. “On Nov. 3, 2008, the day before the US presidential election, Democratic

presidential candidate Barack Obama had 2,379,102 Facebook supporters while Republican candidate John McCain had 620,359. Obama had 833,161 MySpace friends and McCain had 217,811. Obama had 384% more Facebook supporters and 383% more MySpace friends than McCain.”

Promote and Grow

Share your band, company, or product for far less than the cost of a billboard or TV or radio campaign

Encourage feedback to gain insight on consumer’s opinions and suggestions

Effective tool for “word-of-mouth” advertising

Great way for small business, bands and organizations to promote themselves

inexpensively

Establish Helpful Connections

Find People and Groups That Offer Support

Assist with job hunting and professional networking LinkedIn is just one of many business-oriented social networking

sites; share professional contacts, resumes and experience Use friends and friends-of-friends on standard social networkign

sites for information about jobs, assistance, or potential buyers for used items (car, boat etc)

Find and gain support from groups made specifically for coping with loss, addiction, etc. Many social networking sites are tailored to people struggling

with afflictions

The Downside of Social Networking

Cyberbullying and Personal Attacks

Bullying is bound to take place in life, but can have drastic effects online – especially with teens

42% of kids have been bullied while online. 1 in 4 have had it happen more than once.

There have even been cases of cyberbullying-related suicides in teens.

Rachael Neblett Ryan Halligan Megan Meier Jeffrey Johnston  Phoebe Price

Identity Theft and False Representation

Criminals Easily Create False “Profiles” and Steal Information From You

Any criminal can create a profile under any name or location to hide their intent

If you don’t strictly manage your profile, any of your information can be gleaned and utilized maliciously

The US Marine Corps banned the use of all social networking sites because the sites are "a proven haven for malicious actors and content and are particularly high risk due to information exposure...." 

The entire Department of Defense is considering a ban on social networking sites because of concerns over security threats and potential computer viruses.”

Unexpected Consequences

Similar to Identity Theft, Oversharing Can Lead to Vulnerability

Sexual predators Young teens may not be aware of how accessible

their information is Older men or women can easily create a profile

disguised as a younger person to get access to teens

Loss of job opportunities Embarrassing photographs or information may be

viewed by potential employers

Unwanted Exposure to Marketing

While it is beneficial to allow business to spread word about their services in an inexpensive way, trolling social networking sites to mine marketing data and target personalized ads is a completely different concept.

Companies will search your “Interests” or “Activities” to direct specific advertisements to you

Replacing Human Interaction People who are heavily involved in social networking

sites are, ironically, often socially isolated Couples, families and even friends may use the sites

more often than interacting with each other “The use of social networking sites can cause

personality and brain disorders in children, such as the inability to have real conversations, limited attention spans ... and self-centered personalities. The fast pace of the sites may rewire the brain with repeated exposure because parts of the brain used for traditional, offline activities become underused.”

What Now?

Social networking has many benefits – just use common sense and discretion.

Limit your usage of social networking sites Make sure your privacy is strictly protected

Many sites have a “Privacy Settings” page in which you can adjust your options to be more robust

If you have children: Offer guidance and rules regarding social

networking Monitor their interactions online, especially if it

becomes threatening or harmful