Lesson #5/social networking

Social networking is not something to which I'm attracted. I value my privacy too much, and I don't want to get bogged down in yet another computer-based time drain. Instead of setting up a site on one of the social networks I read some articles, which I did locate online!

The first is a news article from the A.P., dated 11/24/08 and accessed from the MSNBC website. The headline reads: "Jury gets case of MySpace hoax tied to suicide." It updates the story of the "Missouri mother accused of conspiring with her daughter...to harrass a 13 year-old girl on the Internet...precipitating the teen's suicide." The woman's defense rests largely on "whether (she)...violated the terms-of-service agreement of the MySpace social networking site." The prosecutor stated "the rules are fairly simple. You don't lie. You don't pretend to be someone else. You don't use the site to harrass others."

The next article is by Maria Aspan, written for the New York Times 2/11/08. The headline: "How sticky is membership in Facebook? Just try breaking free." Four people are interviewed about the near impossibility of "remove(ing) themselves entirely from Facebook," which archives info "indefinitely," even after members have deactivated their Facebook pages.

Last but not least is the article on matchmaking services written by John Tierney, published 1/29/08 in the New York Times. The headline: "Hitting it off, thanks to algorithm of love." This piece is a look at the various claims of several online servces - eHarmony; Perfectmatch.com; and Chemistry.com - all of which use methods such as algorithms, neural chemistry, the dyadic adjustment scale (!?), and more to help people meet their future mates.

In descending order, these three pieces touch on the aspects of social networking that I find troubling: safety, privacy, and b.s. How are we to keep our children out of harm's way online? It seems a daunting and ever more out-of-control problem. Kids are communicating constantly through these networks, and they are doing it at the library, at school, and at home. Who is responsible? Many schools forbid social networking on their premises. Some parents forbid it at home. Surely the kids are doing it anyway. I imagine most public libraries are not monitoring or forbidding social networking activity. Is there a potential liability? Is there a moral responsibility? I don't know the answer.
The issue of privacy is a broad one, but it trickles down to libraries. If a library patron sends out personal information from a public access computer, and that data is mined, does the library have a responsibility? If a user forgets, or doesn't know how to log out or purge data, are librarians supposed to take on the task?
B.s. is rampant online, of course, and buyer beware should be the rule. Only think, what if someone takes the marital plunge after an online courtship conducted from the library, and there is no happy ending? Librarians at fault?!! Could we be blamed?!! I think I know the answer on this one, but the safety and privacy issues are no jokes.