Dating and socialising online - why are they still two separate things?
In past posts in this blog, I sang the praises of social networking sites and talked about how much more natural the meeting process is on there.
Now, after reading the article linked to below, it’s time to talk about the Other Side 
The early adopters of social networking technology were not only those separated from their friends and family by means of physical distance but also those who didn’t quite fit in with their immediate, real life environment. Sites like livejournal and Myspace are notorious for being the haunt of teenage (and older) goths who make use of the exhibitionist nature of those sites in order to finally live out their fantasies of having an active social circle and look mysterious and cool. While the ability to network with others via a mutual friend is very handy, having your friends’ list displayed in a prominent location can make the whole thing turn into a massive popularity contest, a fact which is now much abused by PR companies. People wear their friends and favourite artists like badges of honour, becoming “better people” by having a busy profile. Even the interaction is done publicly, to create the feel of being very socially involved.
Continue Reading 4 comments May 25th, 2007