Social Networking Safety

A recent article in the New York times talks about safety concerns relating to social networking. A new Harvard task force is exploring the risk on sites like Facebook and MySpace that teens are being targeted by sexual predators.

I'm really, really not an obsessive social networker. But even I get bizarre, random pokes and emails on Facebook from total creeps. I'm a skeptical 27-year-old who doesn't spend all that much time on Facebook - but would I be so discerning and cynical at 16? Would I have been at all receptive to online weirdos? To be honest, I don't think so. But that doesn't mean that social networking sites aren't dangerous on some level.

It will be interesting to see what the task force finds out; the online social networking world is new - and will require a new approach to safety. For me - well, in a way I feel lucky that I didn't have to even think about these things at 16...

Mobile Networking in the US

I just saw this article on emarketer about mobile social networking in the U.S. While mobile social networking has taken off in Asia (not surprising) and in the UK, it's still not a mainstream concept in the US. That said, research suggests that mobile social networking will continue to grow globally:

The article also suggests that teens are a prime target audience for mobile social networking; cell phones are their main means of communicating, and most of them will come of age when social networking is the norm.

Still, I'm skeptical. What I'm wondering is who really has the time to stay so connected? Maybe I'm just too old (at 27!), too corporate, too thinly stretched balancing work, school, and a social life, but I simply can't imagine the time commitment associated with staying in touch with people constantly.

An article I read for a grad school class talked about the cultural rationale for the rise of text messaging in Asia. It claimed that mobile connectivity first came about in Japan because teens rarely had "personal space." Tokyo is a cramped city; text messaging enabled teens to communicate - and have a certain level of autonomy. In the U.S., personal space isn't so much of an issue (well, outside of New York).

Maybe that's why we were so slow to adopt text messaging as a communications method. I'm interested to see if the same cultural concept will influence our uptake of mobile social networking technology. My bet is that mobile is here - and it's only going to get bigger on the social networking front. How quickly we adopt it in the U.S., on the other hand, is harder to call.

It's Really All About Mobile...

I just came across this press release on Social Networking Watch - an excellent online resource for the latest and greatest in social networking news.

Just last week, Technorella was a bit overwhelmed with Gypsii's ability to take Facebook mobile, and was shocked to learn about ZuGiDoMe's laser technology. These new technologies seemed to be the "new wave" of social networking, unlikely to go main-stream anytime soon.

But the announcement that Xanga is going mobile in Hong Kong - in partnership with HK's largest mobile provider - makes me think that mobile social networking is already here - and rapidly becoming main-stream.

I guess Technorella shouldn't be surprised - but the more I think about it, the rise of mobile social networking is going to change the face of social interactions exponentially. The boundaries between online relationships and "real" relationships are going to continue to blur.

LinkedIn Logic

We've been looking to hire a few people on my team at work - and it's gotten me to start thinking about LinkedIn, and how it contributes to the job hunting scene.

Our head of HR has brought us a few candidates she's come across on LinkedIn. Most of them are stellar, and could be great additions to our group. The problem? Most of the good ones aren't actually actively searching for a new job. And when it comes down to it, they typically turn down an offer from our team. Why? Because they're truly not in the market to make a move.

As a result, I feel like I've been wasting time interviewing people who don't particularly want to work at my company. On the one hand, it seems like LinkedIn is a great way to find candidates. But how truly relevant is the site when it's not actually leading to legitimate hires? I'm curious to see how things go with LinkedIn, and its role in the job search process.

Social Networking in the Corporate Arena

I've been thinking about the role of social networking in the corporate arena. Technorella works at a PR agency with an incredibly strong interactive department - and the idea of social networking frequently comes up at new business pitches.

Potential new clients are always looking for innovative, new media recommendations. And our interactive team is more than capable of adding a social networking compenent to our strategic recommendations. After all, clients are looking for insight into the digital arena.

But here is my question: is social networking meaningful for corporate entitities? I'm just not sure people - when they're online - are all that interested in corporate messages. Communicating online is largely about staying in touch with friends - and taking a break from work.

Just some food for thought following a new business brainstorm.

What?!

So, I just came across this press release from a company called ZuGiDoMe (I subscribe to Google news alerts on social networking; I'm not an insane person).

Here is the deal: the company (which is seeking investors, and whose patent is pending, FYI) is taking social networking mobile. Ideally, it will become relevant for business as well as personal use.

Basically, it uses laser technology to "connect" people. So, you're walking in midtown with your ZuGiDoMe laser device, and it "connects" to someone else's laser device - who is deemed compatible with you (via information about the two of you stored on ZuGiDuMe's site). You go back to your computer, log into your ZuGiDoMe account, check out the person's profile, and connect with the person online if you choose to do so.

The point, I guess, is to bring "real world" encounters and social networking together. Maybe this will be the new trend in social networking - or maybe it will go bust. Either way, I have to admit the demos on the site made me laugh out loud at my computer. The idea of lasers connecting people is just a bit much for Technorella. What ever happened to good old fashioned chemistry?

An Ode to Online Stalking

Typically, Technorella strives to refrain from bringing her personal life into the blog. But social networking is personal, and I can't resist commenting on a recent Facebook experience. I'm relatively new to the whole scene, and this experience - while typical - made me recognize for the first time why people are so interested in social networking.

So, I recently received an Evite for a party this coming Friday night. It's for a really good friend of mine - so imagine my suprise when looking through the guest list I came across a familiar, and uncommon, last name. Let's call it Kamikaze.

When I was living in Washington, DC, I briefly (and very casually) dated someone with the same last name. Thanks to Facebook, I was able to uncover that the Kamikaze on the Evite is actually the sister of the Kamikaze from DC. She's been friends with my friend for years - only we've never met.

Now, I'm not really sure what this discovery actually means; I'm not going to introduce myself to She-Kamikaze next weekend and bring up her brother. After all, it would be an admonition of some serious online stalking. But, still, there's something about this experience that grabbed my attention. It makes me wonder how many degrees of separation really separate us all.

Maybe Social Networking Sites Do Mirror Real World Relationships...

A classmate of mine from grad school just circulated this paper from June, 2007 by Danah Boyd.

According to her, social networking sites - namely Facebook and MySpace - reflect different demographics of American teenagers:

The goodie two shoes, jocks, athletes, or other "good" kids are now going to Facebook. These kids tend to come from families who emphasize education and going to college. They are part of what we'd call hegemonic society. They are primarily white, but not exclusively. They are in honors classes, looking forward to the prom, and live in a world dictated by after school activities.

MySpace is still home for Latino/Hispanic teens, immigrant teens, "burnouts," "alternative kids," "art fags," punks, emos, goths, gangstas, queer kids, and other kids who didn't play into the dominant high school popularity paradigm. These are kids whose parents didn't go to college, who are expected to get a job when they finish high school. These are the teens who plan to go into the military immediately after schools. Teens who are really into music or in a band are also on MySpace. MySpace has most of the kids who are socially ostracized at school because they are geeks, freaks, or queers.

Why? Because of the "elitist" nature of how Facebook was launched (via Harvard).

I've been ranting about how little online social circles look like "real life." But this article makes me want to reconsider my position. Just as we gravitate to different people, places and hobbies in the "real world," so too do we choose our online social forums based on where we feel comfortable.

I thought I joined Facebook simply because it's what my friends were doing. I didn't think about who my friends are (mainly white, college educated and from upper-middle-class homes) when I went about it. Maybe there's more to these online social circles than I've given them credit for lately.

How "nice" do I have to be to a Facebook friend?

Okay, it's Sunday - and Technorella must digress a bit. I've been thinking about how to be "polite" in the social networking arena, and frankly, I'm just at a loss.

To be specific, there is a certain person - let's call him Fred - who is pushing my social networking limits. Fred sits near my office, although we work in separate groups. And if I'm being honest, well... Fred annoys me. A lot.

I don't actually have any people from my office as Facebook "friends," and Fred and I rarely talk. So I was a bit suprised/perplexed when Fred invited me to be his Facebook friend.

Here's the thing: I don't really want Fred knowing what I do in my free time. But, since I see him daily, wouldn't ignoring his friend request be kind of rude? So I accepted his request, but I must admit that I felt a little bit forced into the situation. And the kicker? Fred just invited me to join his LinkedIn network.

So - here I am, socially networked to someone who I frankly don't particularly like. Yet, not taking him up on his offer would have been considered rude, especially given our proximity at work.

My point is that the more I explore social networking, the more I find online relationships to be relatively meaningless... thanks to people like Fred, online social circles don't mirror day-to-day reality. So here I am on a Sunday - feeling like a mean person because I don't really want to be Fred's Facebook friend - even though the social connection isn't there to begin with.

Is Social Networking Good for Society?

Today the New York Times Freakanomics blog explored the implications of social networking by interviewing a series of "experts."

My favorite insight came from Judith Donath, an MIT Professor:

"The big picture: social networking technologies support and enable a new model of social life, in which people’s social circles will consist of many more, but weaker, ties. Though we will continue to have some strong ties (i.e., family and close friends), demographic changes, such as frequent household moves and the replacement of friends and family with market services for tasks such as daycare, are diminishing the role of social ties in everyday life. Weak ties (e.g., casual acquaintances, colleagues) may not be reliable for long-term support; their strength instead is in providing a wide range of perspectives, information, and opportunities. As society becomes increasingly dynamic, with access to information playing a growing role, having many diverse connections will be key."

The idea of "weaker ties" is interesting... how meaningful, after all, are our online "friendships?" And to what extent will the social networking definition of "friend" come to replace actual human connections?

Some Thoughts on Twitter...

I spent some time last night thinking about Gypsii - and what it means for the future of social networking (and communications generally). And I got to thinking about Twitter.

I am not a Twitter user - so I checked out their page this morning. According to the site, this is why you should use Twitter:

"Because even basic updates are meaningful to family members, friends, or colleagues—especially when they’re timely. Eating soup? Research shows that moms want to know. Running late to a meeting? Your co–workers might find that useful. Partying? Your friends may want to join you."

Okay, those seem like logical reasons for staying connected. But I still don't see the point in essentially sending mini-blogs to my social circle about the ins-and-outs of my existence. My mom loves me, but I really don't think she cares about what I'm eating for lunch. I may indeed be running late to a meeting - but I have a Blackberry and a cell phone - so I'm not sure what added value Twitter offers there.

Again, I'm left wondering: has this craze gone too far? Are social networking sites going to tumble as quickly as they rose? According to a recent BusinessWeek article, social networking sites are experiencing a slow-down. Maybe it's just too much too fast.

As If We Needed More Stalking Options...

Gypsii, a new social networking site launched at a phone industry trade show this week in Barcelona, is raising the online stalking bar yet again.

Specifically, Gypsii's new technology uses cell phones as tracking devises, so social networkers can know the exact whereabouts of their friends at any given time. It's compatible with sites like Facebook - allowing users to share their location-specific information with their network of friends.

Call me a little paranoid - but I don't think I want people to know where I am at any given moment. Not only is this technology big brother-ish - but it just seems to be a bit annoying.

Again, for me this gets back to the why. Why would I want my friends, co-workers, or aquaintances to know I'm heading up 5th Avenue at 3:42 p.m. on a Wednesday?

Just seems like overkill.

Is Facebook Forever?

Today's most emailed article in the New York Times? "How Sticky is Facebook Membership? Just Try Breaking Free."

The article discusses how ridiculously difficult it is to deactivate your Facebook account given the way the company stores data. Broadly speaking, the article brings up a series of privacy concerns associated with social networking sites.

What's most interesting to Technorella? It seems to me that social networking sites bring out the exhibitionist in pretty much everyone. "Privacy" hasn't been much of a concern to those updating their profiles regularly.

Will the tides turn? I think it's too soon to tell.

Has Google Out-Googled Itself Again?

Last week, Google announced the launch of the Social Graph API.

In non-techie speak, the Social Graph is basically a vast social network - connecting users to one another outside of the typical Facebook/MySpace/Twitter realms in which they choose to operate.

According to Google: "The public web is made up of linked pages that represent both documents and people. Google Search helps make this information more accessible and useful. If you take away the documents, you're left with the connections between people." Basically, Social Graph API will show users the people they are linked to when sharing information - not simply the information itself.

What does this mean for the future of Social Networking?

One way of looking at it is that the digital age will increasingly be about social connections - and not simply about information sharing. And the "social" side of the online community won't be limited to sites dedicated to social networking.

Simply put, the Internet - in itself - will BE the social network.

Socially Networked's Official Launch

Today - Superbowl Sunday - is the official launch of Socially Networked, a blog designed to explore the social and technological aspects of social networking.

I must admit, I was late to join the social networking craze. I graduated from college before Facebook and was initially opposed to sites like Friendster and MySpace. I just didn't see the point of any of it. But curiosity got the better of me - and here I am.

It goes without saying that social networking has changed the way we stay connected to others. Only a few years ago, knowing the day-to-day activities of hundreds - if not thousands - of people we know peripherally was unheard of. But thanks to sites like Facebook and MySpace, I'm privvy to the details of people's lives that I thought I'd never see or hear from again.

To me, what's most interesting is how little my online reality replicates my day-to-day life. A lot of my "real world friends" - the people I value most and see on a regular basis - don't even belong to social networking sites. My online circle, on the other hand, includes people I haven't spoken to in almost ten years. I'm "Facebook friends" with an Italian guy I met once at a party in London, but not with my best friend in the whole world who I talk to twelve times a day.

So, what do online community relationships really mean? And why do we feel the need to create digital social circles? Why do we care to know about the lives of people we don't really know?

Maybe it's that online friendships fill a void that's a product of a global society, where people live thousands of miles away from loved ones. Maybe social networks are just another means of filling the age-old human need of feeling part of something. Or maybe - at the end of the day - we just like knowing what people are up to.

What's clear is that staying connected is important to those of us who are socially networked. Why we feel that way, on the other hand, is a much more difficult thing to answer.