Facebook criticised - antisocial?

[PlanckScale]

As much as I hate to give credit to any religious group, I have to agree with the Catholic church on this issue. Unajua, mambo ya urafiki kwenye mtandao (the so called web 2.0 /social networking) yanaweza kuleta a lot of social problems, especial on the young generation. Human are social beings and as such, personal interaction is an important component on their well being. Watoto wana hitaji kujifunza social situations...how to deal with others in public settings, n.k.

I am not a member of any virtual society nor do I desire to become so, but I have always wondered what do people do in those meeting places. Do they make plans to meet physically afterwards? or the relationships remain virtual. If it is some old friend you have discovered, do you aim at meeting in some real space-time, or you become satisfied and remain virtually in touch? I am perplexed...


Here is the actual article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8180115.stm

 

[Bluray]

Planck,

I understand your concern, especially given the projected takeover of the "singularity" and overreliance on technology to replace human interaction.

But at the same time we have to understand that technology is like fire (actually fire is technology) and can be used or abused.Just as one can use a knife equally to prepare food or kill a human being, the same technology can be used positively (keeping in touch with some long lost cousins) or negatively (leaving messages to your wife, whom you sleep in the same bed).

I personally benefit from the positive aspects of socialnetworks.I could simply not kep up with everybody on the phone, or by travelling the five continents (on which I have relations).So rather than blaming the networks, I thank them.But because I understand the centrality of human interactions, I would like to demand a better understanding of the nature of the technology and preservation of traditional networks.

Speaking of traditional networks I would like to flatter myself by saying that I just called bongo and chatted with a non networked cousin to find out how his wedding plans are coming along.

So the supposed conflict between the social netorking/IM world and the traditional channels is not real to me.There is no reason the two cannot coexist.

 

[PlanckScale]

off topic: Singularity - do you mean the "big crutch" .

I see your point, but the issue is not on the alternative modes of communication (plain old telephone (POT) versus the Internet) but rather the overindulgent of virtual-socialization, especially to the young ones.

It is probably easier for you (and I) as an adult to survive in the Web 2.0 era because you have had a "normal" upbringing (ulicheza vita vya udongo, umecheza mpira mtaani, uliomba kucheza bluz kwenye party ukakataliwa hadharani, n.k.). You got your basic social skill already, but what about the young generation who are growing up playing video game mostly alone at home or over the Internet - the ones who meet their best friends on Facebook?

 

[Evy]

i have to be honest, i dont see a point here.

 

[PlanckScale]

i have to be honest, i dont see a point here.

Some quotes from the article:

"Archbishop Nichols said society was losing some of its ability to build communities through inter-personal communication, as the result of excessive use of texts and e-mails rather than face-to-face meetings..."


"...He said skills such as reading a person's mood and body language were in decline, and that exclusive use of electronic information had a "dehumanising" effect on community life."

 

[PlanckScale]

It is 2018 (10 years later) and I am still not on Facebook (nor am I on Twitter or Linkedin!).
Interestingly, Sean Parker, ex-Facebook President on Nov 8th 2017, explains how Facebook exploits human's psychological vulnerabilities...

Here is some quotes of what he said:

"That thought process was all about: 'How do we consume as much of your time and conscious attention as possible?' And that means that we need to...give you a little dopamine hit every once in a while [via likes, etc]...and that's going to get you to contribute more content, and that's going to get you...more likes and comments. It's a social validation feedback loop." "...the...creators [of fb]... understood this consciously, and we did it anyway."