Teens Talk Back: College and Social Networking Sites

NetSmartz welcomes the opinions and comments of intern Jovan Petty, a rising senior at George Mason University.

Hmm. You seemed smarter on Facebook.

Unlike most teens, I never wanted a Facebook account or even a MySpace page. I didn’t feel as if I needed a social networking website to help me keep in contact with people. I mean, I had all of my friend’s phone numbers…so I could just call them, right? I didn’t change this way of thinking until my freshmen year of college. My roommate kept stressing the fact that I needed to make a Facebook account. She told me how she had been meeting people over the summer through the Facebook group for our college class of 2011. I still didn’t think I needed one, but she said it would be easier to meet people on campus. After a week of peer pressure, I succumbed to the idea and made a page. Now, I must admit a day does not go by that I don’t log in to check new photo albums, status updates, friend requests, blog posts, and event invites.

When I receive friend requests online, there are several factors I check before accepting or rejecting the request. I see how many friends I have in common with this person and then I browse their page. Depending on their posted items, like their interests, pictures, and videos, I can begin to ascertain what kind of person they are and their personality. When I first recognize someone in person that I originally befriended online, it’s always funny, because I feel like I know them. I have had classes with people I am friends with online. This is helpful when you miss a class or need a study partner. Romantic relationships are something else that has been hugely impacted by social networking. It may sound cliché, but “If your relationship status isn’t posted online…it isn’t official.” This saying has caused many of my guy and girl friends strife.

Whether in high school or college, people seem to take all blog posts literally. When people post pictures or videos that they think are funny, they don’t always think about how the people in the pictures or videos feel. Many times I have seen the effects of something posted online create drama between friends. It’s a shame, because social networking websites were created to bring people together, not pull friends apart. Even though it’s fun to post pictures of the events or parties you may attend, it is also important to use discretion.

Jovan Petty, Intern