Daily News 2/28/12

http://gma.yahoo.com/chardon-high-school-shooting-gunman-identified-tj-lane-140607186--abc-news.html

Social Media

 

Social Media: Facebook

McKenzy Crump updated her status: Why is Facebook, and other forms of social media, so important to our society? Good question; it’s significant to us because we depend upon it a way to communicate with one another. There are many other important things about it too, including having your own freedom and being able to connect worldwide. Many good and bad things come from all forms of social media; there are some people like Brian Williams, TV news anchor for NBC Nightly News, that like to focus on mainly the bad, and other like Andie Wurster, a writer, that focus on both aspects. Not only do those two talk about Facebook in good/bad ways, other things, like The Social Network, the film show the genesis of Facebook. Also, there are sites, like Wikipedia, that comment about Facebook, The Social Network, and Mark Zuckerberg in general. They all orbit around the thought of social media and the influence it has on everything we do. It definitely has bad things about it like, our attention spans shortening and becoming less social, but it also has good things like people that are far away to keep in contact with.

First lets talk about what Williams and Wurster have to say. Williams thinks that we as a society are too dependent upon on technology to do everything for us and we are all about ourselves, and it shows when he says. “Americans have decided the most important person in their lives is…them, and our culture is now built upon that idea. It’s the User-Generated Generation.” and I have to completely agree with that because it’s very true. People now a days are very self-centered and conceited. We tend to be so full of ourselves that we don’t seem to care about others like we should, for instance, when online people tend to not care about other people’s feelings and hurt them by saying rude and offensive stuff. Now Wurster on the other hand, states the advantages, like how it’s a great way for every one to be connected from all over the world, how you can meet new people, rekindle a long distant relationship, and be invited to little get togethers. I can agree that it’s nice to be able to easily communicate with friends. She also states, “All this is not to say that there aren’t problems with the networks”, for instance: “repeated security breaches put users at risk of theft and spamming, verbal bashing, nudity, parties getting out of control, and a lot of advertising.” I really like how she ads both the advantages and disadvantages, because then it’s easier to get both sides of the story. She has valid points as to why it’s good, but it’s also bad, so she isn’t completely siding with it because even though she thinks it’s good, she knows that it still has it’s faults. Williams on the other hand, just states the negative, which he also has good points, like how we have many options, but I like Wurster’s opinions about Facebook more.

Not only does Williams and Wurster talk about social media, but The Social Network also portrays what they think about how the beginning of Facebook started, but ended up not getting many facts right and added their own personal twists to Mark Zuckerberg’s life. It was all fictional and played out for the audiences and their own entertainment. I will say it was a good movie though, and it also taught many lessons. It mainly focused on life and business lessons, but I’m just going to discuss the life lessons because I appreciate things taught about life more. Lesson number one: Follow your dreams, and that’s exactly what Zuckerberg did. He started pondering and then the ball kept rolling until it formed into something great, and then he started to build it. As it said in the movie, “Go for the 3,000 lb. marlin.” That’s all anybody even wants to do; is to make the thing they enjoy in your life into your career, and if you have the opportunity, you should always take it, and that’s what he did, he went for his dreams and created his thought into something real by taking the opportunity given to him. Lesson number two: A brilliant idea is just that… until you put it into action. Don’t let anyone else say that you copied them or stole their idea when you came up with it and then try to benefit from your success, that’s like saying, “Just because some makes a nice chair, doesn’t mean that they have to give their money to everyone that’s ever made a chair.” Don’t let the thought of someone else try to bring you down for the accomplishments you have made. Finally, lesson number three: Be focused, motivated, and confident in all of your work. Without having faith and self-determination in yourself, you won’t succeed or make it very far. You also need to stay true to yourself and not let others change you into something you don’t want to become, like when Mark’s attorney says, “You’re not an asshole Mark; you’re just trying so hard to be.” Zuckerberg never let anyone get in his way because he was hard working and very persistent.

Lastly, Wikipedia provides good background about how Facebook came to be, and especially how Mark Zuckerberg became the youngest billionaire in history. It first discussed how the movie, The Social Network, is a fictional side to the creating of Facebook for entertaining the audience. Mark Zuckerberg said that the only thing they really got right into the movie is his wardrobe, which I find extremely hilarious because they got the plot all wrong by saying how Facebook started because Zuckerberg was mad at a girl, but they managed to get all his shirts correct. He also states that he didn’t invent Facebook to get the girls or get revenge on his ex. He did it because he loves to build things. The last thing that he states about the movie is that he doesn’t want everyone to think that all he and his friends did was drink and have sex with coeds. He wants the people to know that all he ever did was coding in his room. Wikipedia also shows about how many awards the film won, and how well it was liked. The last thing that it talks about is the worth of Facebook and Zuckerberg. Facebook is estimated at a good $835 billion and Zuckerberg’s wealth is at $17.5 billion. Talk about the next Bill Gates!

All in all, I thought this was a great movie. I like Facebook, and I congratulate Zuckerberg on making a huge success on his dreams. It makes people really believe that an average Joe like him can make something huge of himself by doing what he loves to do. I think it’s great that he made Facebook, but I also want to go back to the days where computers weren’t so involved in our lives, and people would get off their lazy butts to enjoy a nice sunny day when it comes. My opinion about Facebook is I like it. I’m not going to lie to you, and I’m also on it every so often when I’m bored, but I’m not dependant upon it. I go out, enjoy life, hang out with my friends, go on walks, and play with my younger siblings, ect. I still enjoy life and live it to the fullest because I mean honestly, who wants to be attached to a computer screen all day and night? Nobody! My point is simple; you can spend your life living it up to its potential, or wasting hours and hours on end worrying about what and how everyone else is living their lives. It’s your choice; just make sure you choose the right one.