Reflection Journal

1. What do you think are two most influential factors that have contributed to Facebook’s success today? Reflect on the impact (both positive and negative) that Facebook or any social networking tool has on your daily life in relation to these two factors. For each, provide at least one appropriate example to support your answer. (10 marks)

“So much to do, so little time.”

They say that time is the most precious gift one can give to another, as time is never retractable. Once you give it away, you can never take it back. And in this fast-paced world, people are often preoccupied with their own lives that little time is left for others. Hence, the phrase above is now commonly heard among us today.

Epitomising on this concept, Facebook has managed to tweak our lifestyles in such a way that our time still can be shared with others, even in the midst of the twists and turns of our busy lives. Facebook positions itself to be the solution of the problem forementioned that we all face today.

With communication modes such as writing on ‘walls’, sharing photos and videos, and having discussion boards, Facebook integrates a plethora of social activities that are usually offered in separate social networking tools (e.g. Flickr for photo-sharing, forums for discussion boards, and Friendster for writing on ‘walls’) into one platform. This convenience is a bonus point, especially for those users who have ‘so much to do, so little time’.

Besides connecting with friends and families, Facebook allows versatility for users to market, educate, persuade and develop. Therefore, Facebook appeals to both ends of the marketing industry. Programmers may use the social platform to develop new applications such as online games catered for the millions of Facebook users. Retail companies, too, may use Facebook as a platform to listen and reach out to their consumers. It is the perfect tool to run online campaigns as Facebook has an audience of more than 400 million users.

Facebook is a phenomenon that both enhances and damages our relationships with others and our lives. With Facebook, we are able to connect to a wider range of audience in different levels of intensity of connection in a short span of time, as compared to traditional communication methods such as communicating face-to-face or via the telephone. Additionally, Facebook makes it easy to for us to find people with the same interests without the hassle of searching for specific niche forums, whose users’ identities are generally not verified and shared. In Facebook, we simply need to join a group or like a page, where other users will gather to update and share information.

For example, Nutella was ranked #3 of the top companies in Facebook. The thing is, Nutella spent only $300,000 on advertising and did not create the Facebook page themselves. The Nutella page was created by their fans and has generated more than 6 million ‘likes’ thus far.

However, on the other hand, Facebook may impair our ability to socialise in real-life situations as key communication gestures such as body language is absent in online conversations. The myriad of activities offered on Facebook, too, more often than not, creates an addiction of users towards the social platform.

In a recent case in Jacksonville, USA, a young mother shook her baby to death, claiming that the baby was interrupting her while she was playing Farmville, a popular online game in Facebook. The 22-year-old mother was then charged with second-degree murder and sentenced to imprisonment.



2. The movie focuses a lot on ethical issues and responsible use of social networking tools. Briefly describe any one example of unethical/irresponsible use of Facebook in the movie and discuss your views on it. Provide an example on how you can engage an online community ethically on any one social networking tool of your choice. (10 marks)

In the movie The Social Network, Erica Albright ended her relationship with Mark Zuckerberg. Mark, who did not take it too well, went home and immediately blog about her. In his drunken state, he defamed Erica by spewing insults about her and published it in his blog. According to the movie, the blog was not private and was accessible by his friends.

This is an unfortunate but common case that has been happening around the world. Because of the elusive nature of the internet, users are generally more open about their opinions and are more daring to express them without much fear of the law as they usually are in real-life.

In Singapore, there is an increasing number of cases involving online personal attacking and racial comments. Two bloggers have been arrested for making racial comments in their blogs. Such actions are not restricted to average bloggers. A man named Gopalan Nair have been charged for defaming Judge Belinda Ong, claiming that she ‘prostitutes herself’ to Mentor Minister Lee Kuan Yew in court.

As internet users, we have to be aware that defamation laws apply online as they do in real-life. Do remember that assaults in the internet is a permanent form and may be more damaging as they reach to a larger audience and is accessible at all times.

In Facebook, for example, we should make use of the privacy function to restrict views and access from the masses. But we must take note, however , that words spread like fire in the internet and whatever we show in the internet may fall in the wrong hands.