In a previous post, I wrote about the effect of Facebook on our culture and civilization. So, are we really doomed because of Facebook? Will the West lose its influence on the world due to our addiction to this social site?
That may be stretching it a bit, and obviously my article was a satire on this online phenomenon and its amazing viral growth. While I do believe that Facebook – and other social sites - not to mention instant messaging and constant e-mail checking – have created zombies out of our workforce (how much work isn’t getting done due to these sites?), let’s not discount the positive aspects of these sites: instant messaging has made work much more efficient, and quick uploading of photos has done the same. Contracts, Documents, and other files are sent back and forth in a matter of seconds instead of taking days or weeks. Business gets done faster. How many new business relationships have been established due to Facebook and other sites that never would have otherwise? So perhaps the benefits cancel out the problems.
Another reason why the West won’t fall behind the rest of the world is due to the fact that these social sites now exist in those other countries as well. So perhaps we will all lower our standards together, thereby bringing the playing field down for all of us simultaneously. A friend of mine who visits China often to check up on his company’s Chinese office told me that upon his unexpected arrival to the office, every employee had several social applications open on their desktop computers – Facebook, MySpace, instant messaging programs, etc. – but none had the applications relating to their work open at all. In a strange way, this was comforting to me.
Like any technology, there are always negative side effects, but here’s hoping that Facebook and other similar sites help us use this technology to its fullest positive potential.
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