Just when the e-dust settled and pretty much everyone forgot what the “old Facebook” looked like, the unstoppable website did it again. The company’s new changes to profiles’ information section strip users of any sort of individuality and beg the question: Really?!
A few years ago, Facebook had some semblance of credibility. Users had to prove their affiliation to a college or company network, and our parents hadn’t heard of the site yet.
Now the social networking site feels more like a family reunion — you’re surrounded by people you don’t really want to talk to, but somehow they seem to know way too much about your life.
In the past few weeks, I have noticed several friends threatening to leave Facebook for good because of privacy concerns and general disenchantment with the site. The disillusioned may gain followers and notoriety if Facebook doesn’t clean up its act soon (which is highly unlikely).
So, should we stay or should we go?
PROS:
There’s really no alternative. Well, there’s MySpace and Twitter, but those are pretty much just punishments. With no other competitive alternative, leaving Facebook may mean virtual social isolation. Your friends will keep writing on each other’s walls and uploading the party pics that you will never be tagged in. And how will you stalk people?
It’s convenient. If you are under 30, a Facebook account has almost become a prerequisite to living. It’s assumed that you have one. Being a member of the site grants you access via a singular medium to most of the people that you need to communicate with. It’s a one-stop shop and a lot easier than calling or sending e-mails.
It achieves its purpose: It connects. There is no doubt about Facebook’s connective nature. With the addition of the News Feed feature, users might even feel a little too connected to each other. Facebook does keep us in contact with our friends and family. But is it giving us too much contact?
It’s easier than doing something productive. Self-explanatory.
CONS:
The new changes. The changes to profile’s information section make it impossible to have unique interests. Now the only information users are allowed to include in their profiles must be chosen from a predetermined list of information that can be linked to others’ profiles. Not only is this annoying, it’s a thinly veiled strategy to make even more money by targeting ads to our profiles.
It’s an extreme waste of time. It can be fun, but it’s a time-waster. Anyone who has walked through the computer labs on campus or has been to Library West should know this. When we have projects to do, Facebook seems even more appealing than ever.
Family invasion. It can be awkward when family members add you on Facebook, and it’s even more awkward when they comment on your status about having no recollection of last night. If you do succumb to the guilt trips and add your parents and extended family, Facebook’s tricky privacy settings keep you wondering, “Can I be sure that they can’t see my pictures/wall/anything personal about me?” Which brings me to…
Is Facebook even capable of keeping your information private?
In a May 5 article, The New York Times reported that a glitch allowed Facebook users to read their friends’ private chat conversations and see their ‘’’online friends’ pending social requests.”
This may not seem that scary or surprising, but it is another reason why people are getting freaked out by the (lack of) control that Facebook has over their personal information. Lesson: If you don’t want absolutely everyone in the world to have access to it, don’t put it on Facebook.
The choice to delete or not to delete (if you can even figure out how to do it) is yours. But I’m predicting that until someone creates something better and less controlling, Facebook is here to stay and so will be the majority of its current users. Let’s just hope the next Mark Zuckerberg isn’t such a D-bag.
