The power of the internet

“Technology is neither good nor bad, nor even neutral. Technology is one part of the complex of relationships that people form with each other and the world around them; it simply cannot be understood outside of that concept.” –Samuel Collins.
In today’s world, to get a message heard halfway across the world you just need to tap at a couple of buttons without ever having to vibrate your vocal cords. It literally opened up whole new worlds: we can now reconnect with people we haven’t seen in years or connect with others we may never, ever see.
But with every message we send, every picture we post, every thought we share with the world around us, we’re opening up ourselves to the world. And we’re creating impressions. We’re letting everyone in.
We’re putting ourselves out there for the world to applaud us, appreciate us, to critique us, to judge us – and perchance to condemn us.
And at every stage of our lives we’re at different stages of maturity – or immaturity. Every day, we (hopefully) grow a little, learn a little bit more and gain a bit more experience.
So something I might feel confident about blithely posting on a social media site today, I might cringe with embarrassment about next year. Or some thoughtless comment I might have made for the world to see might offend my future boss, or co-workers.
It’s a delicate balance trying to maintain links with the people around you without putting too much of yourself out there.
It’s just too easy to share every detail of your life on the Internet. Tons of people are taking pictures of their food and sharing them on Instagram every second of the day. People are also posting insightful status updates such as “Eating roti”. Food photography seems extremely difficult. It’s definitely harder to get flattering lighting for a plate of curry than for a person’s profile.
All of these things can be great for letting people know about what we’re doing every day, keeping everyone updated, but it probably should be used in moderation. It gets to be a bit much overwhelming even. Do you have to let everyone see what you’ve eaten every day? Do you have to tell everyone that you’ve just made a baloney sandwich? It’s getting so much easier to infringe on everyone’s personal space. Maybe you should send someone a message on Skype before you randomly call them. They could still be in their pyjamas or in the middle of something important.
It’s a bit like stumbling into someone’s house and expecting them to entertain you with absolutely no warning.
It’s a new world out there. With every software update, with every launch of some new social media platform, we have to adjust to this new way for us to share what’s going on with our lives.
So before you open yourself to the world and share every titbit about your life, think about the number of people your message might actually be reaching.
It’s probably a lot more than you originally envisioned. Censor yourself a little bit – not that you shouldn’t have freedom of speech, but you should probably be more aware of your “time and place and circumstances”. “Prudence” is a good watchword.
The Internet is giving us great power, and with great power comes great responsibility, so use the Internet (and the power it give us) responsibly.