Welcome to my blog.
Let's just get the business out of the way. I am by no means claiming I am a Facebook expert, or the final say in Facebook etiquette. I realize that it is a social networking site and people are free to express themselves in whatever fashion they choose.
This being said...
I have seen some ridiculous, disgusting and offensive nonsense posted on Facebook since I began using the site in 2006. While it is an excellent way of staying in touch with your friends, it is also an excellent way to offend other people and hurt your online public image.
So, let's get started with our first deadly sin: The "too much information" (TMI) User.
I know we all have at least a few of these 'friends' on our list. They are the ones that abuse Facebook as a place to share the intimate and utterly private details of their private life with the online world.
I'm talking about those gory details that should never be broadcasted. Case in point, (names have been changed) take Amanda.
Amanda is a seemingly normal young woman. Turns out she made a few bad decisions, and ended up unexpectedly pregnant. I know this because she posted on her status that "she just got back from getting an abortion."
Not only is this distasteful, I am positive no one wanted to read this in their news feed, next to so-and-so who just scored a cow in Farmville.
This is waaaaayyy too much information! In the era of social networking, the lines between what is acceptable casual conversation and what is private have become blurred. Not only was that uncomfortable for me to read that as her status, it made me sick to my stomach that a decision like that could be so casually brushed off as a simple part of her day, next to having breakfast or going to work. The fact that she would have no qualms about advertising this to all her friends makes me seriously question her state of mind.
On a lighter note, I also have a friend named Suzanne. Suzanne's beloved dog died. My condolences.
But for a few weeks after this, Suzanne's statuses were, " OMG BUGSY, YOU WERE THE BEST DOG ALIVE! YOU WERE SOOOOO HANDSOME AND SWEET. IF YOU WEREN'T A DOG I WOULD TOTALLY DO YOU!!!"
At what point are erotic emotions towards your dead dog acceptable?
The point I'm getting at here is, keep private details private. Reserve them for close family and friends in the real world. They are likely the only ones who really care anyways.
What do you think? Are there limitations to what you should share online? Does it even matter? I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
Hey Nat, I totally agree with you: where is Facebook etiquette? Aside from being rude, it's inappropriate and even disrespectful like you said. How can people be so nonchalant or cavalier about an abortion? Either people use facebook to share info they wouldn't feel comfortable sharing in person, or maybe these people WOULD say stuff like this in person to others! Who knows... I honestly think people post stuff like this to get sympathy and maybe even to shock people.
ReplyDeleteSo what you're saying is I should keep my beastiality fantasies to myself?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ashley. I think that some people update their statuses in such a way because they either want the attention and don't necessarily care about the consequences, or they are just doing it for shock value. It certainly is an attention-grabber, regardless of if the status is something good or bad.
ReplyDeleteIt could also be that these people just have no concept of how Facebook works, but in that case they should be banned4life from social media sites or the internet.
Good read Nat!! I've have always found that a TMI thing to do on facebook is to put up pictures of your ultrasounds during pregnancy. I understand that it is an easy way to show close friends and family what's going on, but it's a little much for my taste. Somethings really should stay private.
ReplyDelete