How many times a day do you think you use the internet? My
guess would be more than you would at first think to count. Nowadays we use the
internet for more or less everything – communicating amongst friends on
Facebook, attempting to communicate with celebrities on Twitter, streaming the
music we can’t afford to buy from iTunes on Spotify, tittering at the latest
viral sensation on Youtube, researching our essays on Google. When a phone call
isn’t personal enough, we Skype. On loan day, we hit ASOS. And all from the
comfort of our crumbling student accommodation.
Considering that the internet is still a relatively new
creation (it wasn’t until the early noughties that it became unusual not to have home access), our obsession
has developed at a rapid pace. Social networking has now become so universal
that we quite literally live on the internet through the profiles we create for
ourselves – Facebook’s new Timeline profile allows us to trace a person’s life
in detail right up until the point that they signed up to the site. Having
constant access to Facebook and Twitter through our mobile phones has allowed
this obsession to reach even further, and given us the ability to provide our
online friends with constant updates as to our whereabouts, what we are doing
and who we are doing it with. Whether or not this is necessary, or even
healthy, is no longer up for debate – it is part of our culture.
The sheer speed at which information can be transferred
globally via the internet has given birth to many viral sensations; most of
whom disappear into obscurity as quickly as they found fame in the first place
– Rebecca Black, anyone? Some, however, have managed to launch a lasting career
from appearing on the internet - the most obvious example being Justin Bieber –
but many others, including Boyce Avenue comedienne Jenna Marbles have found
fame through posting videos on Youtube. Whilst this appears on the surface to
be an invaluable tool for those wishing to show the world what they have to
offer, it can work in the opposite way – by bringing fame upon those who most
definitely do not want it. Cardiff student Amy McRow recently hit the headlines
after appearing in a Youtube video filmed by a stranger in the nightclub
Oceana, in which she stripped naked and drunkenly paraded around in a paddling
pool whilst on a night out. Thanks to sites such as Youtube and Twitter, the
video was quickly spread worldwide, and reposted as fast as sites could remove
it. The story was featured across many online news sites, including Mail
Online, proving that you don’t have to be willing to become an overnight
internet sensation.
Although the many minor miracles of the internet vastly
outweigh the negative aspects, it remains wise to be aware of the dark side of
the web. The world is a much less private place than it ever has been before,
and it is worth bearing this in mind before uploading every minute detail of
your life onto the internet. What’s to stop your potential employer from Googling
your name before an interview? Seeing an album of photos entitled ‘Drunken
Mayhem 6’, or spotting that you’ve joined the group ‘I expect to be rich
without making any effort’ probably won’t help your case. Failing that,
remembering not to take your clothes off in nightclubs is also a good place to
start.
