Social Networking and Mass Communication

1999 is when LiveJournal and Blogger were launched onto the virtual scene (Tomlinson and Merholz, 2007). Three years later, Friendster became the first social networking site launched onto the internet (Tomlinson and Merholz). A year later, while Livejournal and Friendster reached approximately one million registered accounts, Myspace is launched, along with Skype being released, and LinkedIn professional social networking site secures their financial backing (Tomlinson and Merholz). Today, there are over 200 plus social networking sites, the more popular one's are Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, LiveJournal, Blogger, and LinkedIn (Tomlinson and Merholz). The scope of these sites allows individuals to post pictures, brief introductions about who they are, write notes/blog content, or provide comments with a variety of graphics and text on their friends page. Also, individuals are able to customize their profile page to allow music (Myspace being the most popular platform to do this), and connect with those they know, had known, or have never met outside of the specific social networking site itself. It is because of this, social networking is not as simple as one would think, especially when it comes down to how we are communicating ourselves through these "virtual identities" and how others perceive us from what they view on our specific pages.

Take a moment and do the following task. Pull up a new window for the Internet, go to Google's search page and enter in your Name. Not only that, but enter in your name three different ways. For instance, enter in your full name (with middle initial only), and see what comes up. Take a look at the first five pages and see what comes up. Perform a second search, but this time put in your name with quotes. What comes up on this second search? Another way to do this is to search last name first, then comma, and then first name. The purpose behind this task is simple, according to Adrienne Samuels Gibbs, she relates how one's "virtual identity" is easily researched by anyone, including prospective employers, supervisors, current employers, friends, family, and even strangers (Gibbs, 2009).

Granted, the original purpose behind social networking sites allow individuals to communicate with one another, share information, and connect with others who have similar interests and desires. However, social networking is not a "new technological" ideology. In fact, the idea behind social networking is based upon how humans develop interpersonal relationships out of the predisposition of societal aspect of our humanity for relationship and survival as a community (Coyle and Vaughn, 2008). It is only nature that because of our innate desire to "socialize" with others, that technology develops and enhances the ability to connect on a more global communal social advancement.

With this evolution of human communication, advancement of technology, and the ability to expand our "Social networking" abilities with one another, there are some inherent dangers that come out of this need to connect with one another. One particular aspect of the social networking dangers is the proliferation of sexual predators (which the reality television series first aired in 2004 To Catch a Predator), and how they use chat rooms, and social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace. Another, and more recent investigation, is that of cyber bullying. Common among young teens and adolescents, cyber bullying has resulted in some tragic events in the lives of some families. Regarding this, Phil McKenna relates two stories where suicide resulted from particular aspects of cyber-bullying. He then shares that as the evolution of "online communication" increases, so also do the venues of cyber-bullying increase, and public as it relates to young people's lives. One specific case that had caught our society's attention is the case of Megan Meier who committed suicide after she had become a victim of not only cyber-bullying but a fake myspace profile was created by a group of people to falsely represent themselves and taunt the 13 year old woman. While it is not the purpose of this paper to discuss the negative aspects of social networking, the context of this is to share information as to how a negative use of Social Networking sites affect human communication, and represent a particular person's "virtual identity". Cyber-bullying, therefore, presents the virtual identity of just that, a person who enjoys dehumanizing in how they communicate and interact with others that they may not like or have a grievance with.

Yet, there are some positive benefits to social networking that communicate something far better than cyber bullying or any other form of criminal activity. These positive aspects actually allow someone to promote themselves through a professional "virtual identity". Take for instance, networking for employment opportunities. Prospective employers are now turning to social networking sites to find out about the individual prior to any possible interview, or after a first interview. Having a professional virtual identity will help share your core values, present yourself as someone who possesses a high sense of integrity, and gives prospective employers and clients a virtual snapshot of who you are. These can range from photos of you receiving awards, videos of public speaking engagements, blog articles that deal with specific industry related information, or general information.

However positive or negative one's virtual identity shows, the reality is that what one thinks to be private may not be as private at all. Even if you set your Myspace account to where people can view you and your photos, does not mean that your photos are not going to see the virtual light of day. Even blog content, all it would take is for someone to gain access to such content, and then publish it in their own blog with their own interpretation and discussion where it is not private. Therefore, it is important that one cleans up their virtual identity to present themselves in a way that they would want to present themselves if they were standing before a panel of human resource managers. It all comes down to a broader contextual understanding of it is not what you say, but how you say it. Importance of maintaining a professional appearance online is vital to prospective employment as well as ongoing employment as it relates to career advancement and progress.

Yet, there is one question that has always occupied my own thoughts about my own virtual identity. What happens to my virtual identity when I die? Think about it, you have a Myspace, a Facebook, a Twitter, a blog or two. What happens to those? How will family members gain access to your content? In today's society, we create online identities through social networking. Blogs become our personal journals, emails are possibly saved, pictures posted on websites like photobucket - yet the question is this, What happens to my virtual identity when I die? It is a very important question and one that I personally wonder about from time to time.

According to Gaelle Faure's article Managing Your online afterlife, there are certain things that family members can do to access your account information, retrieve your content, and even allow you to set up a memorial online. Again, this comes down to the broader context of how you are presenting yourself online, and controlling your virtual identity. Take for instance a husband who has built a successful business, has a wonderful life whom he adores. He passes on and she gains access and finds out that he led a double life? Everything she knew about her loving and devoted husband comes crashing down as the reality that he was unfaithful to her, how he was unfaithful, and there is nothing he could do to come back and ask for her forgiveness. A mother and father who access their child's Myspace account and finds out some of the things he wrote about them, his/her dark secrets that he never shared with them. What does this say? These are questions we ought to ask of ourselves.

The complexities of social networking influence how we communicate ourselves to friends, family, prospective employers, our current employer, and those who are interested in knowing more about us. How we use these tools determines what we are allowing ourselves to be defined in a "virtual context", even after we pass from this life to the next. In short, as the old adage goes - it is not what you say, but how you say it - could be reinstated in these terms, it is not what you post that matter's but how it communicates who you are to others who view what you post. As we have discussed, there are inherent dangers to social networking, there are particular benefits to social networking. However one approaches their interactions with social networking and what they are communicating through these virtual venues, one has to realize that social networking is not as simple as we tend to think, especially when it comes to the way others interpret our "virtual identities". After all, first impressions are lasting impressions.

Gibbs, A.S. (2009). Google me, baby! clean up that web trail before applying for that gig. Ebony

Kadlec, D. (2009). Mind your facebook manners. Money, 38(10)

McKenna, P. (2007). The Rise of cyberbullying. New Scientist, 195(2613),