Difference between revisions of "Morgan Tucker"

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== <big>'''My Data Identity'''</big> ==
 
== <big>'''My Data Identity'''</big> ==
  
I like to think of myself as a unique individual. But apparently, my name is not so unique. Absolutely nothing about me shows up when I search my name on a web browser. Though I feel confident with my identity, in the "infosphere", I am merely lost in the sea of Morgan Tuckers.  
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I like to think of myself as a unique individual. I even won the “most unique” superlative in high school. But according to the web, I am not unique. Well, at least my name is not. Though I feel confident with my identity, in the "infosphere"<ref>Floridi, Luciano. ''Information and Computer Ethics''. Cambridge University Press, 2010.</ref>, I am merely lost in the sea of Morgan Tuckers. [[File:Googlesearchme.png|500px|thumbnail|right|First page of photos that showed up when I googled "Morgan Tucker"]]
[[File:Googlesearchme.png|500px|thumbnail|right|First page of photos that showed up when I googled "Morgan Tucker"]]
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Though it is comforting to know I am not easy to find online, it is concerning that the information found about me does not paint an accurate picture of who I am. The internet cannot keep up with the speed at which my personality, values, and mind changes and evolves; information and data on the internet about me is inaccurate, outdated, and missing crucial pieces that make up my true, complete self resulting in a skewed representation of me.
  
Surprisingly, I am more relieved than upset to know I am not that easy to find online. Though it is comforting to know this, it is problematic the information that can be found about me does not paint an accurate picture of who I am. However, even if an abundance of information appeared when searching my name, online information and data can never portray an accurate representation of a person’s authentic self, as this is constantly evolving and changing.
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==== <big>'''Online Presence Backstory'''</big> ====
 
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Like all overprotective parents in the 2000s, my parents were worried about my online activity. They did not even want me to have a Webkinz account. So, when I was finally allowed to have an iPad, they made it clear that I was not allowed to get social media. Of course, I went against their wishes and secretly created Instagram and Twitter accounts. But I did follow one rule: never use my last name. So most of my accounts are under Morgan Tuck or Morgan T. These decisions from the past have now contributed to the difficulty in finding information about me with a simple search.
==== <big>'''Online Presence History'''</big> ====
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Like all overprotective parents in the 2000s, my parents were extremely worried about me being online. They did not even love the idea of me having a Webkinz account. So when I was finally allowed to have an iPad, they made it clear that I was not allowed to get social media. Well, like any child of overprotective parents, I went against their wishes and secretly created an Instagram and Twitter account. It’s not like they even had accounts to find me. But I did follow one rule: never use my last name and real birthday on accounts. So most of my accounts are under Morgan Tuck or Morgan T and do not have my birthday or accurate age. I guess my parents had some good intentions because this is what I think is the reason it is extremely hard to find information about me with a simple search.
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== <big>'''Who I am According to Google'''</big> ==
 
== <big>'''Who I am According to Google'''</big> ==
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker''''</big> ====
 
[[File:Morgantucker.png|350px|thumbnail|right|Search results for 'morgan tucker']]
 
Searching my full name in google search does not bring up anything directly related to me. However, two of the links that appear on the first page of results are Morgan Tuckers who are designers. I found this interesting because I, myself, am a graphic designer. I figured that Google was showing me Morgan Tucker designers because it knew I was a designer based on recent searches about adobe applications, so I decided to do the same search in an incognito window. To my surprise, I got the same results for my name in the incognito window. At least when someone looks me up they can decipher I am a designer, even if the information is about a different Morgan Tucker.
 
  
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== Nope, You’ve Got the Wrong Person ==
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Searching myself online led to the discovery that much of the information is about other people with my name or misrepresentative of accomplishments, resulting in an inaccurate online identity.
  
The second link was a link to LinkedIn that searched for Morgan Tucker’s with an account. I show up as the fourth result! Until the person searching adds me as a connection, they will only see my name as Morgan T. They also will not be able to see a profile picture, but they can read an article about changing perspectives that I wrote as well as see the posts I have liked on LinkedIn. They can also see my full name, even my middle name, in my header photo. My profile being the fourth result on LinkedIn is exciting to me because I have worked hard on catering my professional presence, however, it is unnerving that though my name only shows up as Morgan T for strangers, it shows up when Morgan Tucker is searched, so my last name can easily be inferred.
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker''''</big> ====
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My first Google search was sweet and simple: "morgan tucker". A link to a search of Morgan Tuckers on Facebook shows up on the first page of the google search. When I clicked on this, my actual Facebook page was the 78th result of the search. That means that there are 77 accounts before mine that could be mistaken for me. This concerns me not only because when I am older, my long-lost college friends will not be able to find me on Facebook, but people can find information that they believe is about me, but is actually about someone with the same name.
  
  
A search for Morgan Tuckers on Facebook is also on the first page further down the page. When I clicked on this, my actual Facebook page was the 78th result of the search. Some people who showed up before my page did not even have the first name Morgan or their last name was not even Tucker. Though I am glad I am not easy to find, I am worried that when I am older my long-lost college friends will not be able to find me!
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After this, I went back to the initial Google search and went straight to the Images tab because I wanted to see if photos of me showed up. There were no photos of me, just people that could be mistaken for me. There is nothing wrong with anyone that shows up in the images, but I would appreciate it if a photo of the real me appeared in this search. It is hard to make sense of information on the internet, especially without the ability to put a face to the data.
  
 
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tuck''''</big> ====
 
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tuck''''</big> ====
 
 
[[File:Morgan tuck.jpg|180px|thumbnail|left|WNBA star, Morgan Tuck]]
 
[[File:Morgan tuck.jpg|180px|thumbnail|left|WNBA star, Morgan Tuck]]
I had big hopes that this search would lead to most of my social media profiles because my username is almost always morgantuck11. However, the only person that showed up for every page of results was a WNBA star.
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I had big hopes that searching "morgan tuck" would lead to most of my social media profiles because my username is almost always morgantuck11. However, the only person that showed up for every page of results was a WNBA player. This is inaccurate information because not only is this person not me, but I have been ordered by my doctor to never pick up a basketball again after two concussions in one high school basketball season.
  
 
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker hawken''''</big> ====
 
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker hawken''''</big> ====
[[File:Facebookhawken.png|250px|thumbnail|right|What my Facebook page looks like to someone I am not already friends with]] I began to think I would have more luck by narrowing my search by including the name of my high school in it. The first link that appears is my Facebook page because I have my high school in my bio. When someone goes to my Facebook page and is not already my friend on Facebook, the first image they see is my profile photo which has a sticker that shows I voted for Joe Biden. The second photo they see is an older profile picture with a sticker indicating I am pro-choice. This is the first instance of my investigation where I found pieces of my identity that tell a story of who I am. These photos with stickers show I am politically active and believe in fighting for reproductive rights. My page also indicates I got to the University of Michigan.
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[[File:Facebookhawken.png|250px|thumbnail|right|What my Facebook page looks like to someone I am not already friends with]] I began to think I would be more successful with my findings by narrowing my search to my name and high school. This search brought me to an archived article on my high school’s website. The article discusses a youth panel I was selected to participate in for the Jewish Federation. As exciting as it is to be highlighted for achievements, the article does not explain what was expected of me on the panel accurately. It states “Panelists are expected to commit to one Sunday per month, host an Israeli teen, travel to Israel, and lead a community project”, and all I had to do was commit to one Sunday a month. This article allows people to think that I have had all of these experiences such as hosting someone from Israel and going to Israel as a teen, but this is not true and was not the essence of the work I did with the panel.
  
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== That Was The Old Me ==
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When I finally discovered information about me, it was outdated leading to a representation of my old self which is no longer who I am as I have evolved and changed.
  
This search also brought me to an archived article on my high school’s website. It discusses how I, along with a few other classmates, was selected to be a part of a youth panel for the Jewish Federation. However, the article does not explain what the youth panel does accurately. It states “Panelists are expected to commit to one Sunday per month, host an Israeli teen, travel to Israel, and lead a community project”, and all we were expected to do was commit to one Sunday a month. This is an instance where I do not have control over what is told about me and false information. Also, this post indicates to others that I am Jewish.
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker hawken''''</big> ====
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Including my school on the search also leads to a page indicating that I received a bronze medal award for a Spanish test. I have since forgotten all of the Spanish I learned and no longer take Spanish classes, so this is not a representation of who I am now.
  
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[[File:Bat mitzvah.png|275px|thumbnail|left|My Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012]]
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker beachwood''''</big> ====
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I included Beachwood, my hometown, in a search to see if this would find anything. Beachwood City Schools is also the name of the school system I attended until high school. This search brought up my Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012 in The Jewish News. The announcement says I attend Beachwood Middle School, no longer true as I am a twenty-one-year-old college student, and says I have not had my Bat Mitzvah yet. It also includes my middle name, my parents' names, and the synagogue I belong to.
  
The search also leads to the same school website, but a page on how I received a bronze medal award for a Spanish exam. I have since forgotten all of the Spanish I learned, so this is no longer accurate.
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== Not The Whole Story ==
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Even information that is accurate and up-to-date online creates an incomplete story because it still leaves out crucial parts of who I am.
  
==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker beachwood''''</big> ====
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker hawken''''</big> ====
I decided to make my search even more specific by searching my name with my hometown, Beachwood. Beachwood City Schools is also the name of the school system I attended until high school. This search brought up my Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012 in The Jewish News. The announcement says I attend Beachwood Middle School, which is no longer true, so it is outdated information. It also includes my middle name, my parents' names, and the synagogue I belong to.[[File:Bat mitzvah.png|275px|thumbnail|left|My Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012]]
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Including my school in the search brings up my Facebook page because I have my high school in my bio. When someone who is not my friend on Facebook goes to my page, the first image they see is my profile photo which has a sticker that states I voted for Joe Biden. The second photo they see is an older profile picture with a sticker indicating I am pro-choice. These photos with stickers show I am politically active and believe in reproductive rights, however, they do not show all of the learning and hard work I have done to help encourage voter turnout and create social change.
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[[File:redbubble.png|300px|thumbnail|right|My RedBubble shop]]
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker redbubble''''</big> ====
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I created a RedBubble shop so I could make money from what I love to do. When looking at my Redbubble, one can see my funky art style and design skills. Though RedBubble gives me a platform to sell my art, it does not convey the amount of time, energy, and thought that goes into my work. It does not show the days I feel no motivation and have zero ideas. Though it allows me to show the world my art, it is not the whole story of the artist. Also, my art style is bound to change, so this will soon be outdated.
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==== <big>'''search: 'morgan tucker checkmate''''</big> ====
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I decided to look myself up on Checkmate to see how accurate the information was. I had never looked myself on a data broker website, so I was unsure what to expect. The website kept showing me warnings that some of the information I find may be surprising to read, and I had to check a box acknowledging this. I felt unsettled and nervous, hoping I would not discover I was secretly adopted.
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[[File:NOTICE.png|400px|thumbnail|right|Warning meesage on Checkmate]]
  
==== <big>'''Concerns'''</big> ====
 
I can gather from my online data my education history, some of my interests such as design and reproductive rights, and that I am Jewish. Though this is not much, it does scare me how much one can figure out about me after a little searching. Due to how much antisemitism exists in today's society, it does often cross my mind the worry of people knowing I am Jewish. Tucker is not a Jewish last name, so on paper, I am not immediately known to be Jewish. Though I am proud to be Jewish, it is not the first thing that I tell people. But because many of my online persona indicates that I am Jewish and even states the synagogue I belong to, I feel a bit unnerved because I have no clue who will end up with this information about me.
 
  
== <big>'''Who I am According to Checkmate'''</big> ==
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I looked at as much as I could before it made me create an account. Checkmate knows my full name, my address, the types of online accounts, and my father, mother, and grandfather's names. Though Checkmate provides my address, it cannot encapsulate what my home means to me, and how it is an integral part of who I am. Checkmate does not mention that this address is where I first learned to ride a bike, had birthday parties, had my first sleepover, lost my first tooth. Providing an address is not the same as conveying the importance of home. Similarly, it knows my family member's names but does not convey how much I value family.
To see how much someone could find out about me in one place, I decided to look myself up on Checkmate. I had never looked myself on a data broker website, so I was unsure what to expect. As I tried to access files about myself, the website kept showing me warnings that some of the information I find may be surprising to read, and I had to check a box acknowledging this. I felt unsettled and nervous like I was going to discover I was adopted or something.
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[[File:NOTICE.png|400px|thumbnail|right|Warning on Checkmate]]
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== <big>'''Concluding Thoughts'''</big> ==
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I am constantly changing and adapting just like the internet, so my online identity contains inaccurate aspects, information that is no longer true, and it is missing crucial pieces.
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Living in an online world, I try my best to portray myself accurately online. [[File:grain of salt.png|200px|thumbnail|left|We need to take internet personas with a grain of salt]] This allows me to feel like I have some control in this uncontrollable world. However, the internet cannot keep up with my evolution as a person, and can never portray all that is me. To get to know someone, you need to spend time with them, speak to them, and interact with them. Internet personas need to be taken with a grain of salt because pixels on a screen do not portray the whole picture.
  
I looked at as much as I could before it made me create an account. Checkmate knows my name, middle initial, where I live, the types of accounts I have such as Pinterest, knows my father, mother, and grandfather's name. Checkmate provided the most accurate yet basic portrait of me without having to do much digging. However, my true, authentic self has yet to be shown through my online persona.
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== References ==

Latest revision as of 23:40, 5 March 2021

My Data Identity

I like to think of myself as a unique individual. I even won the “most unique” superlative in high school. But according to the web, I am not unique. Well, at least my name is not. Though I feel confident with my identity, in the "infosphere"[1], I am merely lost in the sea of Morgan Tuckers.
First page of photos that showed up when I googled "Morgan Tucker"


Though it is comforting to know I am not easy to find online, it is concerning that the information found about me does not paint an accurate picture of who I am. The internet cannot keep up with the speed at which my personality, values, and mind changes and evolves; information and data on the internet about me is inaccurate, outdated, and missing crucial pieces that make up my true, complete self resulting in a skewed representation of me.

Online Presence Backstory

Like all overprotective parents in the 2000s, my parents were worried about my online activity. They did not even want me to have a Webkinz account. So, when I was finally allowed to have an iPad, they made it clear that I was not allowed to get social media. Of course, I went against their wishes and secretly created Instagram and Twitter accounts. But I did follow one rule: never use my last name. So most of my accounts are under Morgan Tuck or Morgan T. These decisions from the past have now contributed to the difficulty in finding information about me with a simple search.

Who I am According to Google

Nope, You’ve Got the Wrong Person

Searching myself online led to the discovery that much of the information is about other people with my name or misrepresentative of accomplishments, resulting in an inaccurate online identity.

search: 'morgan tucker'

My first Google search was sweet and simple: "morgan tucker". A link to a search of Morgan Tuckers on Facebook shows up on the first page of the google search. When I clicked on this, my actual Facebook page was the 78th result of the search. That means that there are 77 accounts before mine that could be mistaken for me. This concerns me not only because when I am older, my long-lost college friends will not be able to find me on Facebook, but people can find information that they believe is about me, but is actually about someone with the same name.


After this, I went back to the initial Google search and went straight to the Images tab because I wanted to see if photos of me showed up. There were no photos of me, just people that could be mistaken for me. There is nothing wrong with anyone that shows up in the images, but I would appreciate it if a photo of the real me appeared in this search. It is hard to make sense of information on the internet, especially without the ability to put a face to the data.

search: 'morgan tuck'

WNBA star, Morgan Tuck

I had big hopes that searching "morgan tuck" would lead to most of my social media profiles because my username is almost always morgantuck11. However, the only person that showed up for every page of results was a WNBA player. This is inaccurate information because not only is this person not me, but I have been ordered by my doctor to never pick up a basketball again after two concussions in one high school basketball season.

search: 'morgan tucker hawken'

What my Facebook page looks like to someone I am not already friends with
I began to think I would be more successful with my findings by narrowing my search to my name and high school. This search brought me to an archived article on my high school’s website. The article discusses a youth panel I was selected to participate in for the Jewish Federation. As exciting as it is to be highlighted for achievements, the article does not explain what was expected of me on the panel accurately. It states “Panelists are expected to commit to one Sunday per month, host an Israeli teen, travel to Israel, and lead a community project”, and all I had to do was commit to one Sunday a month. This article allows people to think that I have had all of these experiences such as hosting someone from Israel and going to Israel as a teen, but this is not true and was not the essence of the work I did with the panel.

That Was The Old Me

When I finally discovered information about me, it was outdated leading to a representation of my old self which is no longer who I am as I have evolved and changed.

search: 'morgan tucker hawken'

Including my school on the search also leads to a page indicating that I received a bronze medal award for a Spanish test. I have since forgotten all of the Spanish I learned and no longer take Spanish classes, so this is not a representation of who I am now.

My Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012

search: 'morgan tucker beachwood'

I included Beachwood, my hometown, in a search to see if this would find anything. Beachwood City Schools is also the name of the school system I attended until high school. This search brought up my Bat Mitzvah announcement from 2012 in The Jewish News. The announcement says I attend Beachwood Middle School, no longer true as I am a twenty-one-year-old college student, and says I have not had my Bat Mitzvah yet. It also includes my middle name, my parents' names, and the synagogue I belong to.

Not The Whole Story

Even information that is accurate and up-to-date online creates an incomplete story because it still leaves out crucial parts of who I am.

search: 'morgan tucker hawken'

Including my school in the search brings up my Facebook page because I have my high school in my bio. When someone who is not my friend on Facebook goes to my page, the first image they see is my profile photo which has a sticker that states I voted for Joe Biden. The second photo they see is an older profile picture with a sticker indicating I am pro-choice. These photos with stickers show I am politically active and believe in reproductive rights, however, they do not show all of the learning and hard work I have done to help encourage voter turnout and create social change.

My RedBubble shop

search: 'morgan tucker redbubble'

I created a RedBubble shop so I could make money from what I love to do. When looking at my Redbubble, one can see my funky art style and design skills. Though RedBubble gives me a platform to sell my art, it does not convey the amount of time, energy, and thought that goes into my work. It does not show the days I feel no motivation and have zero ideas. Though it allows me to show the world my art, it is not the whole story of the artist. Also, my art style is bound to change, so this will soon be outdated.

search: 'morgan tucker checkmate'

I decided to look myself up on Checkmate to see how accurate the information was. I had never looked myself on a data broker website, so I was unsure what to expect. The website kept showing me warnings that some of the information I find may be surprising to read, and I had to check a box acknowledging this. I felt unsettled and nervous, hoping I would not discover I was secretly adopted.

Warning meesage on Checkmate


I looked at as much as I could before it made me create an account. Checkmate knows my full name, my address, the types of online accounts, and my father, mother, and grandfather's names. Though Checkmate provides my address, it cannot encapsulate what my home means to me, and how it is an integral part of who I am. Checkmate does not mention that this address is where I first learned to ride a bike, had birthday parties, had my first sleepover, lost my first tooth. Providing an address is not the same as conveying the importance of home. Similarly, it knows my family member's names but does not convey how much I value family.

Concluding Thoughts

I am constantly changing and adapting just like the internet, so my online identity contains inaccurate aspects, information that is no longer true, and it is missing crucial pieces.

Living in an online world, I try my best to portray myself accurately online.
We need to take internet personas with a grain of salt
This allows me to feel like I have some control in this uncontrollable world. However, the internet cannot keep up with my evolution as a person, and can never portray all that is me. To get to know someone, you need to spend time with them, speak to them, and interact with them. Internet personas need to be taken with a grain of salt because pixels on a screen do not portray the whole picture.

References

  1. Floridi, Luciano. Information and Computer Ethics. Cambridge University Press, 2010.