Monday, October 28, 2013
This all-too-familiar box pops up on your screen.
All you wanted to do was preview that new Miley Cyrus song everybody is talking about, or take one of those completely accurate Harry Potter personality tests, but instead you are being asked to surrender your personal photos, statuses, date of birth, and any other piece of information you have posted on Facebook to some mysterious, unknown online database.
It doesn't seem right.
As individuals with varying beliefs, interests, and attitudes, all people should be able to express themselves as they please through any social media platform, free from their real-life identities, according to their own ideals and desires.
As a person's online presence has become increasingly prevalent in today's society, people are constantly asked to log into different platforms through their already-existing online identities. While this is not forced upon anyone, it is usually quicker and a lot less work than setting up an individual profile for every website a person will encounter. This has resulted in the formation of a single identity that reaches across the entire World Wide Web.
This one perception of an individual is constantly being used online:
• It is used in marketing to give businesses the ability to target audiences that are most interested in their product.
Although there are clearly benefits to this uniform online identity, it creates one major problem.
The single identity does not account for the multi-faceted reality of an individual.
A person is not only what they post on Facebook or Google, but an intricate combination of many various perspectives and interests, likes and dislikes, weaknesses and strengths, whether they are publicly displayed or not.
A complete freedom of expression is essential to the growth of individuals. Andrew Lewman, the executive director of the Tor project (a free software that enables complete anonymity) stated:
It is crucial for everyone to remember that they have the right to keep their multiple social media identities separate, by learning to compartmentalize their appearances according to their own desire. Furthermore, individuals should have the right to fully remove their identity from their online handprint.
Without these freedoms, people would be barred from using the internet for its intended purpose:
"The ability to be anonymous is increasingly important because it gives people control, it lets them be creative, it lets them figure out their identity and explore what they want to do."Because a person's online identity is so closely linked to their offline identity, people are barred from freely expressing their individuality on the web.
It is crucial for everyone to remember that they have the right to keep their multiple social media identities separate, by learning to compartmentalize their appearances according to their own desire. Furthermore, individuals should have the right to fully remove their identity from their online handprint.
Without these freedoms, people would be barred from using the internet for its intended purpose:
limitless discovery and innovation.
Jacob-
ReplyDeleteYour argument is fresh and compelling. Your post flows extremely well, even your visuals are appealing and well incorporated. I am impressed, to say the least.
Your stance on the dangers of one online identity surprised me-
Isn't it better that we have fewer accounts that show more of our diversity than to have numerous accounts that exhibit each different sphere of our character?
Theoretically, what if a potential employer was trying to inspect your online persona and they only looked at Facebook? Would they be satisfied with the information you share and are linked to on that site? With your theory in action they would not know your multi-faceted self unless they were fully involved with Twitter Jacob, Insta Jacob, Yahoo Jacob, Tumblr Jacob, etc. It is not so much the idea that we need not consolidate our online persona, but the need for others to view more than one half of our online life. After all, we are one individual. We have one identity; and we all know that one identity is composed of different interests and experiences. We don't need to separate them from our tangible reality for our less translucent online one.
Hannah,
DeleteThank you for the compliments; they are much appreciated.
My question for you is: Do you really think it's a good idea to express our whole, true selves online?
Our weaknesses, our flaws, our differences- these are what make us individuals.
For example, pretend you have a really infectious foot fungus. You search online for what this may be, but you can't seem to pinpoint it. Instead, you decide to go on http://www.askthedoctor.com, which will allow you to explain in full detail the effects of this fungus. In order to post something, you must sign in with an account. Or you have the option to sign in with Facebook. For time's sake (the foot fungus is quickly spreading), you sign in with Facebook.
Once you post your questions to the doctor (and a high-resolution photo for a better diagnosis), it unknowingly posts on Facebook. When you check your notifications later that evening you realize 37 of your friends, including your recent ex and your brand new boss, liked the post and you have comments from your mother asking if you need her "special" ointment. People are texting you and calling you asking if you are okay, and the Relief Society is even creating a schedule to cook you meals until you are healed.
While this is just a silly example, there are many parts of me that I certainly would not want openly available to the online world. As this single identity is becoming increasingly relevant, I believe it is safer and more comfortable to simply compartmentalize our identity as we see fit.
Oh man, it bugs me how many people I see giving random sites access to their facebook profile. I'm not sure if people do it because they aren't educated about what exactly a third party can do with that information or if they don't care.
ReplyDeleteI also fear that the ability to be anonymous if being slowly destroyed. Sites like Facebook and now Google/Youtube argue that discourse is much more civil when people have their names associated with their posts, but I worry that this ultimately leads to the suppression of unpopular opinions because individuals are too scared of what others think of them to share them.
Daniel,
DeleteI completely agree. Not every opinion or interest should be publicly visible to the online masses. This can create an unsafe environment for an individual with an unpopular belief. It makes them vulnerable. When these ideas are associated with a name of a real person that one is familiar with, it can lead to irrational assumptions and unfair treatment.
For example, I've found that the most successful group work using Google Docs is when the contributors are anonymous. The anonymity gives them the opportunity to take risks and make suggestions that they probably would not have made if people knew they were the one's behind it.
Individuality and self-preservation online can only be fully expressed when a person is free of a single identity.
I am guilty of being one of those people that will sign in to websites using my facebook or google account just because it is easier. I don't want to spend time creating an account and having to remember the username and password. It is a lot easier to simply click "log in with facebook," and not have to worry about anything else.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I also know that some websites would use my information maliciously, so I only log in with facebook when I know the site is reputable and that I will use it often.
I agree with you about anonymity on the internet though, I enjoy the control, freedom, and confidence that being anonymous gives me.
Leilani,
DeleteEven presumably reputable websites can use your information for malicious purposes. Do you remember when Instagram announced they were changing their privacy policy last January? If not, here is a news article about it from CBSNews: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57559759/ Basically, the makers of Instagram announced that your photos, username, or likes could potentially be sold to other companies.
My point is that any website has the ability to use your information for anything you post. If their policies do not allow it now, it is important to remember that they can change at anytime according to the will of the owners.
The only surefire way to be safe is to be able to remove ourselves from our online identity in order to keep our more personal, sensitive information private.
An interesting topic, though your point of view scares me just a little. From what I gather, you're saying that it's okay to present an image of ourselves that is not necessarily who we are. A song by Brad Paisley pokes fun at this kind of attitude (http://youtu.be/UE6iAjEv9dQ). It is scary how many sites have the option to log in with facebook, but when used wisely, it can be used to present a full-faceted picture of who we are. From a business perspective, it might be a good idea to have your facebook linked to third-party business sites that you frequent, allowing you to show work that you've done in those areas. But it remains important that one doesn't relinquish all his rights to these sites, but retains the ability to choose what can be accessed.
ReplyDeleteLogan,
DeleteI am not saying to fake who we are online. Not only is that misleading, but potentially dangerous (watch one episode of To Catch a Predator and you'll know what I mean).
The point I'm trying to make is to share information that you feel comfortable with sharing on your different social media sites, but be careful who you let have access to that. Also, different opinions and interests appeal to different audiences, and it is more appropriate to compartmentalize the material you share for each specific website.
Rather than a single, online image, making it almost impossible to explore, discover, and contribute one's own individuality, we must all be aware that separating our information online is essential for one's own growth and the growth of our society.