Social Networks & Privacy
The Internet has for a long time been the acid test of ‘freedom of speech.’ But at what cost to large numbers of unsuspecting individuals? Frequently famous personalities are the objects of Internet video leaks that are rapidly propagated throughout the globe by method of Internet services like YouTube, whose hyperlinks are effortlessly promoted on social network profiles such as MySpace and Facebook. But nearly as frequently, celebrities are made by the broadcasting of embarrassing videos of ordinary individuals, which are then electronically disseminated and posted and thus transmitted like wildfire to each end of the world. The infamy which comes from many of these videos or photos being spread so easily can be deeply upsetting to the personalities who are exploited by their being passed around. But who is to be called to account? A person can’t be held to the responsible simply for forwarding an email or putting up a public link to their Facebook profile.
The Internet and social networking sites are simply a more modern medium by means of which the spread of information has been made more accessible. Unfortunately, or fortunately, making every person with access to a computer a qualified reporter with the ability to reach large numbers of people the world over. So it is not the social networks that are to be answerable for this invasion of privacy, but the community at large itself. Social tradition thrives on the spread of gossip and information sharing. So long as you are not the victim, you have no problems forwarding that humiliating video of a poor boy cavorting around his room making believe to be a resistance soldier from Star Wars (The young man is currently in therapy and has dropped out of on his education, on the off chance that you were puzzled). Websites such as TMZ.com survive only thanks to human desire for salacious garbage and celebrity scandal.
Similarly, we must understand the Internet’s limitlessness, and the nonviability of control over its material. In this day and age, one must know that one’s actions could be on the Internet instantly. With digital cameras, mobiles with video features and immediate access to YouTube and Facebook, your actions could be passed around to your friends and unknown people equally well as it is happening. We must redefine what is private and what is fair game, as it is no longer safe to take for granted that all we do will remain in our hands. Technology has a trajectory of their own, and the Internet is a prime of an invention that can quietly slip away from its original use and find many more functions as long as the multitudes demand it.