Response- Week 10

1) Have we entered a period where people act as their own gatekeepers to determine what is private and public on a personal level?

I think that the answer to this question is a definite yes. The majority of people have now created profiles on at least one social networking site. Those who wish to lead a truly private life have chosen not to create profiles. Anyone who has created a profile on a social networking site (SSN) is at least somewhat aware that the information that they post to that profile is not private. Facebook has highly customizable privacy settings that allow you to filter your information depending on the relationships that you share with others who belong to the network. I think it’s important to distinguish between public and private on two different levels. When I talk about public and private information in terms of content on an SSN, I’m talking about what one chooses to keep private from people who may exist on the SSN but are not accepted as friends by that particular user. Public and private are an entirely different matter in terms of the companies that run SSN’s and the companies that the SSN chooses to do business with. Facebook considers everything that you post on your profile to be public in the sense that this information can be shared with third party advertisers to customize FB advertisements. Also – to use the Facebook interface and utilize some of the biggest offered tools such as “likes” means accepting that these things are public. You cannot opt out of your “likes” being public information. Although Facbeook offers many customized security settings that allow the user to act as a gatekeepr of their own information, this is really only true to a certain extent. But I think the thing to realize with this question is that the security settings allow the user to feel like a gatekeeper. That feeling contributes to the amount of sharing that takes place on the site, and therefore contributes to its popularity and usefulness to outsiders.

2) Could it be argued that mediated publics are also making life easier in many ways?

It’s certain that mediated public technology makes it easier for us to connect and stay in touch with one another. Features that include chat history have made my life easier when I ask class related questions through Facebook and I can go back and look at a response or answer that a classmate gave me. Caitlin mentioned that a potential boss said that they wanted to use her Facebook account to get to know her. This means that a SSN profile can be used as an extension of one’s resume and portfolio but presents many mixed signals from employers. I don’t know if there are any features that make life easier for us besides making it easier for us to connect with one another. The rest of the potential benefits are still being weighted as we try to balance public and private information.

3) Are we really aware at how much privacy settings do in safeguarding our information?

I think that this answer depends on who you ask. Older adults using SSN’s like Facebeook tend to be more aware of which privacy settings are offered and how they safeguard because they are generally more concerned about personal privacy. Younger generations do not care as much, although studies indicate that they engage in at least moderate information management in terms of what is posted to their public profiles. I think that most people are only aware of privacy settings on a surface level as far as what friends versus non-friends can see. I don’t think that most people are aware of privacy settings that you can opt-out of in terms of who Facebook shares your information with.