Post: Social-Networking Can Be Hazardous to Your Future
Social-Networking Can Be Hazardous to Your Future
With so many options, and an increasing popularity, kids and teens are quick to put their pictures, hobbies and bios up on social- networking sites. In fact, Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, Xanga and Friendster encourage it.
But how will their decision to post a scantily clad photo, or a description of their love of being the popular kid in school, make them look to their future boss or college admissions counselor?
Just as these sites are becoming popular among young adults and teens, corporate America is quick to Google the name of their current applicants.
What happens when a teens try to break free of posting personal, often exaggerated info for the world to see, and start making strides in the real world? Will a hiring manager be forgiving or will social- networking lead to corporate exile?
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There are 5 replies to this post
Date: June 14, 2006
This is an unfortunate effect of the increasing availability of information. Certainly people act differently at work than at play, and if teenagers aren't allowed to show their "play face" on the internet, then what's the point of having such profiles anyway?
Date: June 14, 2006
Oh my god, I need to tell my teens about this...
Date: June 15, 2006
This is weird. Since when do college admissions people have the time to do internet research about their candidates?
Date: June 18, 2006
Look, if the Internet is presented as a public space from the beginning, something that it's not possible to privatize, then kids will grow up feeling similar to it as walking down the street. That will not only prevent posting things that will embarrass them (nudity is probably the least of it), but also not sending thoughtlessly incriminating email, websurfing at work, and leaving embarrassing histories on your hard drive.
This is in part why the kids are moving offline to text-message. Then parents, employers, admissions officers won't know the first thing about the kids; only the phone companies and the government.
Date: June 19, 2006
Hahaha...wait, that's not funny...
I think adults have the same issues. Who among us hasn't sent some embarrassingly personal email only to realize what you thought was private isn't anymore?
All of our online accounts are "password-protected." How can someone possibly present the internet as a "non-privatizable" space?