Facebook Addiction

Alright - I admit. I use Facebook all the time. It's become a ritual; I log into Facebook the same time I log into my e-mail. This is the first action I take every time I go on the Internet or even just use the computer. I need to write a paper - okay, well, after I check Facebook. I need directions - what's on Facebook? I need that recipe for French Dip again - oh hey look who's getting married! It's a great tool because I can stay in contact with people who are too busy to pick up their phones, like me. Also, I have a lot of friends around the country due to me and them moving all around.

Here is where I construct who I am to the outside world - I put my stats about my life, what I'm doing and what I believe. The problem is, it's not always really me. Facebook makes me censor myself since I know everyone else's stats and beliefs. I don't want to offend them. I don't want to list my religious or political beliefs because now my parents are on Facebook and I don't want them to think I'm their terribly raised daughter.

I know TOO much about people now. I also know how they have no shame in driving me nuts to improve their farms. That's why I wish I could change Facebook into just a contact source, like a cell phone or a letter. I want to be able to notify people on Facebook and then converse with them in a more private setting. Unfortunately, I like gossip too much, so I depend on other people's 'too much information' for my entertainment.

For students, I feel that Facebook can be a good lesson in audience, both intended and unintended. The students may write to a specific audience, but it will be read and (mis)interpreted by a wider audience. This can lead to a lesson in creating a more specific audience (i.e. don't post in the extreme public!) or by writing to a more diverse audience (what kind of words and what kind of structure to use).