About Facebook...OMG...Actually BRB

1. Drawing on the reading and your own Facebook experiences, list and describe TWO specific criticisms Hodgkinson makes of FACEBOOK that you find meaningful, and TWO specific criticisms of FACEBOOK that you find weak, misleading, or a "stretch." Be sure to explain your reasoning.

A. I agree with his criticism at that beginning of the article. “Doesn't it (Facebook) rather disconnect us, since instead of doing something enjoyable such as talking and eating and dancing and drinking with my friends, I am merely sending them little ungrammatical notes and amusing photos in cyberspace, while chained to my desk?” In my experience many incoming students that are new to college are very well versed in any type of computer program but they seem to be less personable and less comfortable in social situations. Social networking sites are the new way to create connections, but many of the innovators and leaders in today’s society value people who can strike up a conversation and be articulate through speech not type.
B. I also agree with the statement he makes about Facebook appealing to self-importance and a sort of vanity. Many Facebook users that I have come across try to create an artificial representation of themselves. And with this social networking site having a better quantity of friends is more important than sustaining a better quality of friends. “The more friends you have, the better you are. You are "popular", in the sense much loved in American high schools.”
C. His point about the creators of Facebook is weak. He spends a lot of time talking about Peter Thiel, and it sounds like he has some personal vendetta against the guy. Using that much text to show that one of the creators of Facebook is a greedy capitalist doesn’t really help sell his point at all. He beats down the creators and just to build them up by saying that Facebook is a genius business operation.
D. His argument against the big business and advertising in Facebook also doesn’t sell me his point at all. “Sign up to Facebook and you become a free walking, talking advert for Blockbuster or Coke, extolling the virtues of these brands to your friends. We are seeing the commodification of human relationships, the extraction of capitalistic value from friendships.” Its obvious that any company that explodes with success like Facebook would be looked at as a great investment for any advertisers. With so many young minds using this web 2.0 tool, brands like Coca-Cola can interject new promotional ideas through this portal.
2. Next, take a look at this 1 minute embedded FACEBOOK video above. What criticisms of Facebook do our Champlain student colleagues seem to be making? Do you agree with the conclusions their video makes? Why or why not?
These students are making the point that Facebook has become more of a trend than a networking tool for some people. There are users that join the online service and don’t understand half of its capabilities or why they are part of the revolution. I agree with the conclusion their video makes because many friends that I have on Facebook are using a million new applications but aren’t actually networking at all. Their interaction with this website becomes more about entertainment and less about meeting new people and continuing friendships no matter where in the world you are.

3. Finally, share a personal FACEBOOK experience here, in 4-5 sentences, that helps us understand the pros and cons of FACEBOOK as a Web 2.0 platform. Do the PROS of Facebook outweigh the CONS in your mind? Please explain your reasoning.
The birthday experience on Facebook generally outweighs anything else I have seen during my 4 years using the program. It blows my mind that I receive 2 phone calls on January 2nd (my birthday) and 45 Facebook messages on my wall from people I haven’t conversed with in years. This shows that Facebook as a Web 2.0 platform is generally very superficial and its hard to be genuine when writing a message on someone’s “wall.” In the end I believe that the Pro’s of Facebook do outweigh the Con’s because despite the commercialism and vanity it is a great networking tool and if used properly you can keep in contact with old friends, co-workers, or family.