In the article “Brave New World of Digital Intimacy,” Clive Thompson discusses social networking – facebook, myspace, twitter. All of these sites allow us to think that we know people because we get a look into their lives and personalities. But are these sites really allowing us to know people?
I think with these sites today, we think that we really know people. We can meet people from all over the world and just by looking at their pages and messaging them back and forth, we automatically think that we really know them. But the truth is, we really don’t. With all these online social networking sites, we really can be whoever we want to be.We can come across as anyone and no one knows the truth except for ourselves and those who we know – in real life.
With these sites we constantly have to check back and forth to see their “status” – are they still single? Are they going out this weekend? How do they feel today? But again, what is really the truth?
I have personally stayed away from these social networking sites because I feel like they invade privacy. I’m sorry but I don’t want everyone looking and seeing what I’m doing everyday. I don’t want anyone, who I may have once known but am no longer friends with finding me and thinking we have a great friendship.
While I do use the computer to research topics and for entertainment reasons, I have chosen to completely avoid social networking. I prefer face to face contact more then this fake intimacy of friendship that social networking brings.
