Should We Expose Ourselves to the World?
“Big Brother is Watching
You.”
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| "Big Brother is Watching You" slogan from 1984. (photo/previewsworld.com) |
A slogan from George
Orwell’s classic 1984. Orwell
anticipated the shift in media. He knew technology would consume society, yet
he probably had no idea to what extent.
Someone is always watching
you. “Big Brother” was watching Orwell’s protagonist, Winston Smith. In the
novel, Orwell developed a utopian society, and it is very frightening how
accurate the author was with his prediction of the future.
After all, Orwell wrote
that novel in 1949. I don’t think the year 1984 was the definite time in which technology
consumed our lives, but the events in 1984
become more frequent today. Technology has undeniably changed the way we
function.
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| The evolution of technology with the camera. (photo/tonyarrasmith,zenfolio.com) |
Social media is a place
where people can write about their problems, their joys, their frustrations and
their questions. Social media has become an age of the spectacle, in which
everyone can see what you share.
“Big Brother is Watching
You.”
There is a question about
social media: How much should we expose to the world?
According to an article I
read, it provides an answer for how many posts we should make per day before we
become repetitive.
Pinterest: 5 pins per day
Twitter: 3 tweets per day
Google+: 3 posts per day
Facebook: 2 posts per day
Only post relevant information,
not every thought you have per day. No one wants to see your shopping cart at
Walmart. No one wants to see a picture of the weather outside.
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| A trending photo craze on Facebook. (photo/Kasy Long) |
A common rule of thumb:
Post information that you yourself enjoy to see on your News Feed.
Should we expose ourselves
to the world? If it is important information, yes. If it is unique and
creative, yes.
However, remember:
Everyone can see what you post, so be aware of your audience. Know who is
watching you. It’s not Big Brother, but it may be your father.
-KJL-
Interesting take. As someone who works in media relations, social media has proven to be an ideal tool to reach out to regional and national media, keep track of current news trends, and increase awareness of my reputation and that of my employer. Your research seems about right. However, I have read other reports that a business should file as many as 20 Tweets daily (since each Tweet has relatively short shelf life). And, a social media consultant advises we should only do 12 to 15 Facebook posts each month to remain relevant to your Fans. Social media is a work in progress, and will probably be gone in another 10 years. Just look at MySpace's demise. Keep up the great thoughts!
ReplyDeleteInteresting viewpoint. I don't think more is necessarily better in terms of posting on social media. Some people seem to post everything they do on Facebook which is overkill. I just end up scrolling past them.
ReplyDeleteI believe people post too much personal information as well as trivial comments and photos that is of no interest to anyone else. I agree, I don't care what is in your shopping cart at Walmart! Interesting and indeed frightening how the 1949 novel of the prediction of the future is so accurate.
ReplyDeleteBeing on social media daily, I think that people are overexposing themselves a little too much. I think some people need to turn their social media accounts in for journals. There they can write anything they please without annoying anyone with all of their posts. In a modern society like today, many companies check their employees' social media accounts, by over exposing themselves on the internet, employees may even lose their job as well.
ReplyDeleteYour perspective of social media is unique! I love the book 1984, but I always thought that "Big Brother" was more of a dictator or totalitarian government rather than the public. However, your analogy still holds true because many people don't realize what they are posting online for all the world to see. Many employers even use social media to get a good idea of who they are hiring. So in a sense George Orwell was right!
ReplyDeleteThe last part I found somewhat entertaining. I see people tweet stuff every other hour in regards to their every day life. They'll go to the bathroom or any other task that I feel should be private. These people do not realize what they are posting can be viewed to every body on the Internet. This can affect future jobs and relationships.
ReplyDeleteThe last part I found somewhat entertaining. I see people tweet stuff every other hour in regards to their every day life. They'll go to the bathroom or any other task that I feel should be private. These people do not realize what they are posting can be viewed to every body on the Internet. This can affect future jobs and relationships.
ReplyDelete