Social Networking Sites

Social networking sites have increased drastically within the past few years. Now that Myspace is in our past, Facebook and Twitter have truly dominated the social networking scene. In the article “Social Networks: Definition, History, and Scholarship”,  social networks (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system. The nature and nomenclature of these connections may vary from site to site. 

I agree with all of these definitions because I believe that from the social media websites I use, I feel that the sites accomplish the objectives listed above.

Despite the fact that social networking sites allow people to have access to other people's information and connect with others more effectively, the sites still control many aspects of the "freedom" we think we have. For example, LinkedIn controls what a viewer may see based on whether or not they pay for their account. This type of control is based upon the simple luxury of paying to use LinkedIn, versus using it for free.

Social networking sites allow users to freely express their beliefs and feelings, and in a way is an effective writing outlet. You're writing in an electronic environment where people can read and respond to your work. It's like writing an essay and getting peer review. This public display of beliefs and information is crucial to social networking sites because  it allows anyone who comes across your profile to see exactly how you feel about certain topics or what your personality is. 

However this may be effective, it is also misleading. Sites may allow people to become far bolder in their posts than they would in real life, which poses a problem for their credibility.