Difference between revisions of "Talk:Megan Carroll"

Latest revision as of 19:47, 1 April 2016

Comment #1:

I really enjoyed your humorous introduction, and your story about how your Facebook profile was something that was kept hidden from your mother. I think you could elaborate on this even more, explaining that content on social media platforms like Facebook may be inappropriate for individuals under a certain age, and why. You did a really great job incorporating the big questions from Smith and Watson's article. You used this essay question to analyze why you post the way you do online, and why you feel uncomfortable "oversharing" on Facebook. You also connected your thoughts to another ethical concern discussed in class, ethical acculturation, to assess whether you stay true to yourself online, or act differently. I think you do a great job acknowledging that because you choose not to post personal information, this can be harmful when a stranger comes across your profile. Moving forward, I think you could acknowledge the other perspective of this idea as well, explaining that sometimes it is important not to disclose personal information to strangers. You could connect this point to your points about unauthentic "friendships" on Facebook and how this leads to false identities. Overall, great job!

-Abby Suldan

Comment #2:

Megan, great work! You have a really smooth writing style and I found the personal experiences you shared funny and relevant to your work. Also, reading over your piece about your initial thoughts Facebook when you were 7th grade, made me think of my own similar experiences of confusion and lack of interest when I first joined. I liked the transition from explaining your profile and online persona to tying it to the questions from the Smith and Watson work and how protocols and norms apply to your theme of "oversharing" and the reasons for staying away from it. I see your point. All people use Facebook differently. Some really get into and actively make their profiles really reflect their personal lives, but there are others use it passively as a medium for storing photos and staying in touch with friends. There are obviously consequences to both, but like you said the "oversharing" idea can be dangerous given the scope that this public information is used by others to label or form a first impression about a user. Overall, you raise good points, but could expand on them a bit more possibly by adding more personal experiences or well known stories of instances of oversharing. Again, nice job.

- Joe Obarzanek

Comment #3

Hey Megan, I enjoyed reading your Facebook Avatar evaluation. I like how you compared your modern use with your use when you first got your account.

In the section “So this is what the hype is about…”, you mention that you were afraid of what your mom would say about your profile. Did your actions on Facebook change after she found out about it? If you allowed your mom to view your profile page, was your presentation of your online identity impacted by the knowledge that your mom could see your posts?

I thought that the section where you discuss the generational differences in social norms on Facebook was especially interesting. Do you think that the tendency of older users to make longer posts has an impact on the authenticity of their online identities? Are there other social norms that impact your posting habits?

You mention that you hide your true self by using your online avatar. You could expand on this by describing some of your motivations behind choosing not to post about you political and social beliefs. Is it just because you don’t have the time, value offline venues for those discussions, or another reason?

Great job! Best, Joanna Warrick