Social Networking

The new media skill of networking is a very resourceful skill to have, as it can impact many facets of an individual’s life. It is a great way to meet people, whether be for personal life or work life. Applications like Facebook provide an opportunity to create a personal profile and express connections with other individuals using such social media outlets (Riesner, Netter, & Pernul, 2013, p. 185). With that being said, when creating these profiles and socializing with others through these outlets, there are many privacy issues with the sites themselves and when people become to comfortable using the site.

Networking with other people involves the sharing of information, and sites that this is done through may not be secure. It is a known fact that once something is put on the Internet, it is always on there for everyone to see. This fact is often forgotten when connecting with others. It is very important to be critical about the information being shared when networking through digital media, as anyone can get their hands on it. There has been a large problem recently with social networking site providers keeping records of personal information placed on these sites (Riesner et al., 2013, p. 186). I personally agree with the idea of networking, as it is a great tool to build connections and potentially help with future careers, but I believe it is crucial to be mindful about what is being posted or discussed on these Social Networking Sites. Personal information is normally needed when creating account for social networking but it is very important to be able to distinguish between reliable and non-reliable media sources to ensure that this information does not get in the hands of someone who shouldn’t have it.

Jenkins (2006) explain that it is very important for young people to learn how to perfect the skill of networking in order to communicate thoughts with the right people, who it is directed to, while protecting the information from unwanted observation.

References

Riesner, M., Netter, M., & Pernul, G. (2013). Analyzing settings for social identity management on Social Networking Sites: Classification, current state, and proposed developments. Information Security Technical Report, 17(Special Issue: ARES 2012 7th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security), 185-198.

Jenkins, H. (2006, November 6). Eight traits of the new media landscape. Confessions of an Aca-Fan. [Weblog]. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/08iBZvB