On the other hand…
- June 12, 2009
- By Brian
Maybe there’s more to this social networking thing than certain graphics lead you to believe…
A guy named Zimmerman fights back:
For all the whining about the way Facebook degrades the concept of friendship, the first friendship tier at least of the vast majority of profile-keepers is made up of real, live friendships. Same with Twitter. Some such friendships may have gone dormant over time, while others are resorting to online interactions because the franticness of life is making it increasingly difficult for them to see one another face to face. That’s right: at least part of what motivates at least some people to seek one another out online is that they want to but, due to larger social forces, can’t sync up their schedules to look one another in the eye.
In addition, the fact that a Facebook profile or a Twitter feed functions as a sort of archive, an album of verbal snapshots, means that users can build on one another’s comments and links and status updates and everything else. I’ve been soliciting jokes to share at church every week on both Facebook and Twitter, and more often than not the initial solicitation generates wildly creative riffing on themes and ideas from people who wouldn’t otherwise get to play together. That’s not shameful; that’s delightful and immensely gratifying.
There’s more.
3 Comments
Twitter and Facebook are not to blame. Obviously, they can be used for good. But what are these “larger social forces” inhibiting people from interacting face-to-face? I hope we do everything necessary to cultivate true friendships and community.
“For all the whining about the way Facebook degrades the concept of friendship, the first friendship tier at least of the vast majority of profile-keepers is made up of real, live friendships.”
I am not quite sure how Zimmerman can know this? I don’t presume to know everyone’s relationships online, but I do know my own, and I do know that oftentimes I use these social networking sites to ward off myself from more personal interaction and relationships. That is a sin of mine that I must repent of.
I agree with you Chris, Twitter and Facebook can be used for good or for bad, just like alcohol or any other gift from God that the human heart can worship falsely as an idol. Also, the “other social pressures” can be idols just as much as online social networking, be that a job or whatever else. I cannot imagine what “social forces” Zimmerman would be talking about (even geography can be taken head-on: with a telephone!).
Bottom line: relationships take work; oftentimes that means recognizing the idols in our lives that separate us from other people and from God. It doesn’t help us to 1) totally obscure the good uses of online social networking with discouraging items such as the graph, or 2) be satisfied with a lowest common denominator tool because other idols in our lives are not being addressed.
May we worship Christ and Him alone, and may our community develop upon the foundation of Him.
Amen.