Unplugged

My alarm goes off at 7:30 every week day morning.  That alarm comes from my cell phone.  Typically, one of the first things I do after waking up is check my email and social media pages.  From there, I either go to school, where I'm studying Communications, or to my job, where I manage social media.  Could I unplug from all of this?  Sure.  I might go insane, but yeah..I COULD do it.  Do I want to?  Abso-freaking-lutely NOT.

I've left my phone at home before.  It was a nightmare.  Honestly.  I made a friend break in and bring it to me.  I couldn't tell you the last time I tried to answer a question or write a paper without the powers of Google.  Heck, sometimes I Google things I already know the answers to just to ensure I'm right before I go spouting it off to someone.  I love technology.  LOVE.  IT.  It makes me happy and it makes my life easier.  Why in the world would I go without it?

Now, lets say the Zombie apocalypse happens and there I am without all of these things I've grown so accustomed to, could I survive?  Absolutely.  I don't depend on technology, I simply take advantage of it.  Would it be hard at first?  Duh.  But i'd get through it.  I've seen The Walking Dead--i'm heading towards the nearest prison and locking myself in.

As someone who loves technology so much, it is no wonder I found this class so interesting.  I enjoyed learning about the theories explaining our media dependence the most--I've applied it to my own life several times; usually thinking that by buying a movie ticket I am decreasing my chance of doing something else media related.  Out of the five classes I'm taking this semester, this one comes up in my every day life the most.  It definitely hasn't been the easiest class, but it has been one of the most enjoyable.  And i'm not just saying that because this is my last chance at a 10/10...or maybe I am.  Whatever.

This Just In: Mickey Mouse Selected to Replace CIA Director Petraeus

See what I did there?  Yeah, that headline--it's FALSE.

Before I get in to the big, bad and the ugly side of blogging, let me first say that I actually do think that a blog is a wonderful tool of expression for most (most being the key word here) people.  In many cases it's simply an online journal--somewhere you can put your thoughts and see if you're crazy or if others actually agree with you.  Other times its a way to voice concerns, write reviews, or just a place to vent/gloat all together.

As a communications major starting to enter the work force through internships, I have had more than one occasion where I've been asked to provide writing samples.  This blog has been one of them.  I've also been asked numerous times why I don't have a blog of my own; and the answer is simple:  I don't want you to judge me.  Well, actually, I don't really care about that so much as the fact that I can only write (truly write) about things I'm passionate about.  With that passion, I realize that others will be equally as passionate about the opposite of whatever I choose to write about.  I just don't want to spend my every waking moment defending myself to people I likely don't even know.  Trust me--I wish I could write about rainbows and lollipops and call it a day, but I can't, I won't, and you can't make me.

The problem lies not within the blog world, but with the news world.  The same news sources that we, as Americans, have come to know and trust.  But how can you trust an outlet that is so hasty to post a story that has not even the slightest of fact checking?  You can't, really, but what are your alternatives?  The instance of Gov. Haley that we read about in the article only goes to show that you (obviously) can't trust everything you read.  Stop focusing on all the problems with the bloggers (because, really, who cares what some Joe Schmoe thinks?) and start focusing on why it is okay for NEWS outlets to report these things like they are facts.

I'll step off my soapbox now, thanks.

Big Brother is Watching (so what?)

In regards to internet privacy, I have to say my level of concern is likely lower than most.  Don't get me wrong, it's a little bit disturbing everything you can find out about a person by simply going online, but it is my philosophy that if you don't have anything to hide you shouldn't have anything to worry about.  I realize there are always exceptions to that, but I know that when I "check-in" on facebook i'm letting the world (or, at the very least, my some 300 facebook friends) know where I am at any given time.  

I like to think that I take steps to prevent people from seeing the things I don't want them to see.  I set my facebook to private, I don't post statuses about things I wouldn't say out loud, my address and phone number aren't prominently displayed (that's not to say you couldn't find them elsewhere, but hey--give me a call sometime, doesn't mean I have to answer.), and I don't post photos I wouldn't show my grandma (obviously--since we're facebook friends).  As far as my financial privacy goes, I make sure that the limited amount of online shopping I do is through a secure website and I always say "no" when it asks if I want it to save my information.  I know, I know, it's still out there, but sometimes you just have to have a little blind faith.  This is not to say I haven't been burned in the past, I've had my information stolen once or twice, but luckily I have fraud protection on all of my debit/credit cards.  For me, the rewards still outweigh the costs.  

What really concerns me about internet privacy is that while I am careful to take these steps to protect myself, I would say the vast majority of people don't even realize their information is at risk.  As for facebook, I had to do a lot of searching to find out how to set my profile to private, delete my phone number, and not allow certain applications to access my information.  Most facebook users are unaware that these things aren't automatic--they're just assuming that facebook has the users' best interest in mind when that is obviously not the case.  The same thing can be said about a lot of things on the internet--you probably don't realize that some places are selling your information to third parties (where do you think all that spam mail is coming from?).  The lack of knowledge about how to protect yourself rather than the monitoring itself is what I think the focus should be on.

All of this is not to say that I am okay with the government or any other entity monitoring my every move.  Yes, there should be regulations in place and yes, there are some things that should remain private.  However, as there is not enough time in the day to go into every aspect of internet privacy, I would again say that overall if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about.