How has social media websites changed the way I communicate? That is a wonderful question. I was very reluctant to jump into the social media craze. My sister-in-law kept telling me that I needed to have a Facebook page so I could see pictures of my nephew Cade’s birthday party. I am a pretty private person and didn’t want my personal information floating around in cyberspace but after some coaxing from different people I reluctantly joined Facebook. I immediately liked what I found. I found it interesting to be able to find people I haven’t seen since high school. I have often wondered where some of my friends had landed after graduation. With the invention of Facebook all I had to do was type in their name and boom there they were, well most of them anyway. I didn’t really use Facebook for anything but looking at pictures until I reenrolled in college.
When I reenrolled at Columbia State I found it was very easy to find most of my classmates on Facebook. This gave us a place to talk about missed lessons and homework assignments. This also gave us a space to vent about any teachers we felt were being unfair to us as students. It is very easy to post a comment about someone when you know they will not see your comment. I have seen my fair share of people commenting badly about someone they know only to have that person find out what they had said. One thing I noticed when I use Facebook, is when it comes to younger people, they are more likely to say something questionable about someone else. I am not sure if they don’t think that person will see it or not. I have told my children everything you have ever put online will stay there. They are not to put any kind of personal information of any kind on Facebook. My daughter has a Facebook page and she can’t use a picture of herself as her profile picture. I have seen too many episodes of To Catch a Predator.
I have noticed that my communication skills have grown more cautious as I have used Facebook. I don’t post things like I used to, I never posted comments about everything I did but only posted the most important stuff. I have a friend on Facebook who posts when she goes to take a bath. (I think that is a little too personal for me, but it must be just fine for her.) The only things I post now are comments or questions I have about a class I am taking. Facebook is a wonderful place to connect with classmates because if I have a question I know one of my classmates will help me solve my problem. Facebook is also a wonderful place to visit when someone you know is in the hospital or are on vacation. I have a friend who is currently in the hospital. She has her laptop with her and we can check in on her right from the comfort of our house. I would love to visit her in the hospital but she is in one that is far from my house.
I know Facebook has changed the way I communicate to some extent but I still think I prefer face to face communication over cyber communication. I really like Facebook but I think it is time to find other things to use for communication. I think the next conversation I have will be in person instead of instant chat on Facebook.
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