Digital Dress?

John Battelle’s blog raises an interesting point about the future of social media. He calls it The Rise Of Digital Plumage and says that so far entries on Facebook and Twitter have been pretty homogenous, but that down the road that may not be the case. Just like dressing up, people may want to express their individuality in the way their data shows up online. It is an interesting observation, but concerning. Last week I wrote about how some kids are suffering depression after looking at the rosy glow of most people’s Facebook pages – the old “the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence” routine – as most people only put the positive things going on in their lives up online. To my mind, it’s bad enough the emphasis on young and beautiful in the real world, much less online.

Comments

[Diane Kendall]

Brad,

I appreciate your comment and your positive outlook. It is like a lot of things, once someone points it out to you, then you know and can go on from there. In this case I think we need to mention more often that what's on Facebook and other social networking sites is just the positive side of people they want the world to see. If kids understand that then they won't think everyone else's life is better than theirs just because things look so seemingly rosy online. It is part of human nature to always think that the "grass is greener" on the other side. We all need it pointed out to us every once in while that usually just isn't so.

[Brad Fallon]

Well that can't really be avoided. Kids easily get depress when they cannot compete with others. It is in their nature to want what everybody has. But they can overcome it easily because they can adapt right away.