Antisocial Networks

It needs to be said at the outset that even my mother claims I'm "antisocial." Which probably explains why I'm usually elsewhere when family get-togethers get together. But maybe my various aunts and uncles and cousins and nephews would see more of me if they'd consider an online social network akin to those provided by Facebook or MySpace.

The explosion of membership at social networks such as Facebook and MySpace--MySpace boasts more than 20 million members, and Facebook more than 7 million--helps people make friends online, but is problematic, particularly for universities concerned about students posting intimate details on the Internet. Member profiles and photos, for instance, can be accessed by anyone--including stalkers.

A recent symposium at the University of California, Berkeley, attended by some 150 student advisers and counselors, explored this problem. Keynote speaker Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, praised the practical virtues of Internet communities, but warned of the consequences of documenting unlawful activity on the Web. "People should not be posting pictures of themselves doing illegal things, anywhere" said Zuckerberg, who started Facebook when he was a student at Harvard University as a way to get to know more about his fellow students and make friends.

According to Yasmin Anwar, a member of UC Berkeley's public affairs office, advisers and counselors at the "Social Networking and Online Communities: What Student Affairs Professionals Should Know" event expressed concern about the potential abuses of social networking technology. But student panelists said that while young people should be made aware of the risks, the dangers are overblown. They also asked that their schools not snoop on them.

It is hard to say how many students belong to online social networking communities, but it's clear the number is growing exponentially, particularly among high-school students. Facebook has members from all 4-year colleges and universities in the country--85 percent of the undergraduate population--and receives 1.5 million photos a day. Zuckerberg said that, on average, members log in 18 minutes a day.

And, I'm willing to bet, most of these prople are related to me.

Posted by Jon Erickson at 08:43 AM  Permalink