Blackout Social Networking Article

1. Without having experienced a social media withdrawal, how can you imagine it would it affect your daily routine?

I would feel out of the loop. I use social networking, mainly facebook, to keep in contact with my friends, find out what people are doing, and share what I’m doing. There are other ways to communicate for sure, but without social networking it would be more awkward. I imagine I would get about the same amount of things done. I use facebook when I’m bored. If not facebook, then something else like stumbleupon.

2. Once you have answered 1 above, complete a self-imposed “unplugging” from one or more social networks that you typically use. Fully dis-engage from your iPhone, Facebook, Twitter or other social tool. How long were you able to stay unplugged? What was easiest/hardest about disengaging? What did you learn in the process?

DAY 1:

It is my first 12 hours of being unplugged from Facebook. It’s hard because it seems so second nature to check it. Before going to bed, or when I get up in the morning it’s the same process each time; open email, check the weather, check Facebook. I wouldn’t say that I NEED to check Facebook, but it feels like I know that I have messages waiting for me, people trying to get in contact with me. I suppose if I needed to I could always send them an email. I know I’ll have to cheat a little this week, two of my classes use Facebook for discussion. I’m going to try and not let that be an excuse. It’s still pretty hard. I figured in the last 12 hours I would have been on Facebook maybe an hour total; like 4 or 5 times checking it just for ten to fifteen minutes. I don’t know which I feel worse about, that I can’t check it out (even though in reality nothing has probably changed online) or that I can’t go about my normal day without checking in online.

DAY 2:

First full day done, and another just started. It has been tough not being active on Facebook only because I know I have messages from friends waiting for me. It’s hard when you become so reliant on something to give it up. It would be like if someone didn’t email or text for a week; especially if you know that you are receiving emails and texts. It highlights how interconnected we are and how much the world has changed. 20-30 years ago few people had cell phone, there wasn’t texting, and the internet wasn’t in the palm of your hand. If you didn’t hear from someone for a while that was ok, because the access to people was smaller. Today, it’s still ok that you don’t hear from a person but at least you’ll know immediately.The access and speed is really bothering me.

However, the reality is probably that not much has gone on in my digital world in 36 hours.

DAY 3:

Finally broke the blackout. Checked Facebook last night. As I assumed nothing new in my digital world had drastically changed; just a few messages from my friends. That being said, it was quite the experience of not having Facebook. Unfortunately most of my time that would have been spent on Facebook was spent in boredom wondering about what was happening on Facebook. I have learned a lesson through this: moderation. Some of the down time that I normally spend on Facebook didn’t necessarily go to more productive things. I spent the most part of my extra time on StumbleUpon. Which I suppose is kind of productive given that my interest include things about current events, politics, technology, etc. So the time that I would have used socializing was spent instead gaining knowledge. However, during this I noticed for example, that when I found a really interesting website I wanted to share it, obviously via Facebook.

 

3. What alternatives to completely unplugging might be good suggestions for your peers as they learn to balance social engagement in online and real-world environments?

I would ask how imbalanced the engagement is between their real world and digital world? Even through this ephemeral experiment I still praise the value that Facebook has evolved to in society. It provides another public sphere of discourse that is easily readable to a much larger population. That being said, moderation of anything including Facebook is essential to a balanced life. I would recommend designating time away from all digital interactions. For example, staying connected via Facebook, Blackboard, or email is essential during the busy school week in order to stay up to date with friends, professors, and current events. From my personal life I can recommend disconnect when it is not necessary to be constantly informed. In my circumstances, my last classes are done on Thursday. I tend to only check email in the morning and nights from Thursday to Sunday and Facebook only when I know I’ll need to get in contact with someone that I would rather not call or text. A disclaimer however; I don’t have a Blackberry, iPhone, or Android. I imagine if I did have the Internet in the palm of my hand there would be two possibilities: 1) Social networking, email, and other forms of communication would become normalized to me, similar to text messaging. 2) The imbalance in my life between the digital world and real world be become even greater.

Can someone with a smartphone perhaps provide insight to how they deal with social networking and communication with constant access?