It seems as though everything that we do relates back to this one networking site-Facebook. If we want to know where somebody is, if we want to know when someone’s birthday is, or if we want to find out someone’s phone number, we go on Facebook. I know the other day I was trying to figure out someone’s last name and when I asked a friend if she knew, her response was, “That’s what Facebook is for.” To an adult, that would probably sound so bizarre. Yet, to our generation, most people would agree with my friend. It is almost as if we know every single thing that every one of our friends is doing. We know when they eat, sleep, and do their homework. We can see pictures of what they did when they went shopping or to a party. It’s quite humorous, because this site has actually become addicting.
I cannot recall how many times people have told me that they shut off their computers when they study so that they won’t go on Facebook. Logging in leads to hours of “Facebook stalking” and leaving messages. Let’s not even get started on bumper stickers. Thousands of pages worth of stickers that people spend even more time making. We instant message, write on each other’s walls, send messages to each other’s inboxes, and still have more to say in a video recording.
However, Facebook has also become a great thing. It has become a modern way of communicating with one another across far distances. We are able to keep in touch with old friends on our own time and not feel obligated to sit on the phone for hours. We can wish someone a happy birthday and pretend that we did not forget because Facebook reminded us all week.
Organizations and groups have caught onto how effective this networking site is as well. They are able to create groups and send messages constantly informing members about upcoming events and socials. There are so many times when we want to attend something, but never heard about the event again.
Instead of this happening, we can receive messages constantly and visit the group page to keep up to date.
When it seems like people are wasting hours clicking through pictures of their best friend’s ex-boyfriend’s current girlfriend, sometimes they are also looking for upcoming events and networking with new people.
If it hadn’t been for Facebook, I would not have known about several events that I have attended on campus and I wouldn’t have had the chance to have lunch with people that host these awesome events I have attended.
Maybe Facebook is taking over and maybe we do spend too much time doing what seems like absolutely nothing as opposed to writing a paper. However, whether that is a good or bad thing is difficult to decide.
Jillian Barton is a first-year student. She can be reached at JB669457@wcupa.edu