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Confession  : I enjoy Facebook stalking.

Often, I reassure myself I am not the only person that has an obsession with looking at profiles obsessively. 45 percent of businesses across the United States use social media to screen out their employees. If they do it, why can’t I?

The information is public, so I don’t feel bad about prying myself into the personal information of others. I am driven and become obsessive about being the best/top/leader in a class or extracurricular activity. My facebook obsession, in my opinion, stems from my curiosity to see how I compare to my peers. I’ve always been this way. Ask any person who took classes with me in high school and they will most likely questioned him or her about the answers he or she got on a test. Why? Because I compare and position myself. It’s odd, but I am who I am.

So, when I look at Facebook, I often position myself against my friends and peers. “Are they in a relationship” leads to “why am I not in a relationship”. “How many internships did they have” turns into “I don’t have enough on my resume”.

There are times when I get a little pleasure when I position. For example, I busted my ass off in high school to get into UW-Madison. The year that I was admitted, roughly 50% of the 3,098 students from Minnesota who applied to UW-Madison were accepted . While some people were off partying and taking slacker courses, I (plus my close group of friends who I still speak with everyday) devoted my time to Advance Placement classes, sports, and extra curricular activities (to give you an idea, my roommate Max lead our student council to raise over $20,000 for charity in one week’s worth of events). Now, I am in one of the nation’s best strategic communication programs, taking on an additional “track” within my major, getting a certificate in business and graduating with honors. When I look at the profiles of people who fail to apply themselves in jr. college, I have no sympothy.

So, this brings me to a question I have no answer to: is it taboo to compare your success to the downfall of others? Part of me thinks that I don’t know the whole story about those who I knew in high school and now over Facebook. However, the other side of me screams that I should feel proud of my accomplishments in comparison to my peers. Also, I want to know if this mindset only exists in the school setting or if it transcends into work life? Can I give myself a pat on the back if I get a promotion while other employees are stuck in their baseline positions?

Well Facebook, you’ve made me analyze way too much about myself. If stalking is bad, I have another Facebook plan: become Farmville entrepreneur and finally beat my roommates in WordTwist.

My mother is funny, but she may not receive as many laughs as a late-night comedy host. However, my mom and Conan O’Brien share something in common: work ethic.

The other night, I watched Conan O’Brien’s final show. As I sat with an Izzy’s Soda in one hand and my other hand typing a message on Facebook, I laughed at Conan’s sketches. The best part of the night, however, came in the last five minutes of the show.

In case you missed his speech, Conan tried to connect with his “young” audience, giving them advice on the future. Here is a passage from his speech (transcript taken from the Chicago Sun Times):

“And all I ask is one thing…and this is…I’m asking this particularly of young people thatwatch…please do not be cynical.  
I hate cynicism. For the record, it’s my least favorite quality.  
It doesn’t lead anywhere.  
Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get.  
But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen.  I’m telling you.  Amazing things will happen.”

Now, how does this relate to my mom? Often while sitting at the dinner table as a pre-pubscent teen, my mom explained that successful individuals take responsibility for their actions, both the good and the bad. Nothing good, in her mind, comes from putting the blame on other people.

As a college student figuring out his major and career path, Conan’s advice plus my mother’s wisdom are starting to reflect in the work I do both in and out of the classroom. In my opinion, strong leadership comes from those who know when to step in to take charge as well as those who can provide constructive criticism in a respectful, non-condescending manner.

I’ve had many courses that involve group projects, requiring my teammates and I to work in collaboration. At first, I was a work-o-holic that tried to tackle all aspects of projects, essentially undermining the other group members. As time passed in my college career, however, I learned that success in teamwork comes from strong communication and knowing when to step in when someone does something wrong. Last semester, I worked on a class project with 14 other students as a Web master, acting as an overall manager for deadlines and copy-editing. There were times where I saw potential errors in my peers work. However, instead of bombarding them with a  ”change this” here and a “really…this doesn’t work”, I figured out how to relay improvements they could make on their work.

I think that GenYers should take Conan’s message to heart. Although young professionals live in a competitive cutthroat market of professionalism, I don’t believe underlying rigor is an excuse for disrespect in the team setting. When something goes wrong on your project or at work, don’t play the “she’s at fault” or “how can he not understand how to do this” game. Being passive aggressive does not help anyone, including yourself. Call me an old fashioned person who still thinks like a kindergartner, but I focus my efforts around giving individuals in the classroom and out in the workforce (well, the places that I have worked thus far) around one component: good old respect.

I never thought I would take away so much from a late night talkshow. And don’t worry dad… your blogpost is next.

Blogs are growing on me… a lot. Right now, I follow many tech, personal branding and professional development blogs. Don’t forget all of my friends abroad.

While I see the enormous social benefit of blogging, my stomach churns when I read blogs that claim to serve as a source of “news.” I have no idea if the stories I read:

• provide truthful information
• have a bias or act as a neutral source
• bond individuals together or create divides, both social and digital

If social media and blogging continue to evolve and grow, the digital field of communication needs safeguards to ensure that “news” content will move and inform readers instead of potentially feeding them BS.I am not the only person who thinks in this fashion. The FTC recently created a guideline for product endorsements on blogs (read the nitty gritty here). This move is similar to the changes advertising faced in the early 1900s.

My predictions for the future of social media and blogging: muck. Actually, I am referencing the tradition of muckrakers- journalists who work to expose corruption and unethical practices (read the history via wikipedia because I am too lazy to find a “scholarly” source at the moment). I have a strong belief that blogs will arise that dedicate their digital space towards investigating the claims of others and work to expose the “good” from the “bad”.

To put this in perspective, let me ask you a question: have you ever read a blog that presented information you knew was not true? information that was fabricated? information that only showed one side of a story? This type of blogging correlates with Yellow Journalism. Yellow Journalism, according to the late historian Frank Luther Mott in his book American journalism, consist of the following:

• “scare headlines in huge print, often of minor news”
• “lavish use of pictures, or imaginary drawings”
• “use of faked interviews, misleading headlines, pseudo-science, and a parade of false learning from so-called experts”
• “emphasis on full-color Sunday supplements, usually with comic strips (which is now normal in the U.S.)”
• “dramatic sympathy with the “underdog” against the system.”

In my opinion, yellow journalism shares similar qualities with unethical blogs that present fabricated, false information.

So, how do you, as a blogger, prevent yourself from creating a YellowBlog? I have two suggestions (warning: I am not a social media expert or blogging expert, so take everything I say with a grain of salt):

• GIVE CREDIT TO OTHERS Ideas begin somewhere. If you apply information that others compiled, you should cite where you received the information from. This is an elementary concept that some people don’t apply. Penelope Trunk, a professional development blogger with over 45,000 readers, does an AMAZING job of using statistical information and giving credit when she makes claims. When I read her blog post, I understand the breakdown between her own voice/opinion and the ideas of others that she applies to her arguments. If you look at books that focus on scholarly arguments, like The Craft of Research, you can see that Penelope takes the correct approach when writing.

• VERIFY YOUR CLAIMS If you decide that you are going to focus your blog on objective information instead of opinion, make sure that you have evidence that supports your statements. You never know if a reader will comment on your post and debate the validity of your information.

Right now, I finishing one of many loads of laundry- a sign that it’s time to go back to school.

With the plethora of Facebook and Twitter updates from my friends explaining that they made it to Europe, I think that this semester is going to be different that others. Less friends on campus, but more opportunity to go out and try something new.

Last semester, I dedicated the majority of my time to my six-credit journalism course that basically consumed every living moment of my life. Now, I have more time to try things out. I am starting a new internship at Brazen Careerist (yay!), taking courses that focus around advertising and marketing, and also am back on the Executive Board for my business fraternity.

Still, I have some time to kill.

With that, I am rolling off my list of goals I have for the upcoming semester. I want to create a tangible roadmap of the “fun” things for next semester instead of saying “let’s go out” or “I really want to take a road trip somewhere.” And so begins the list:

1. Read a newspaper everyday (this can be a national paper or a campus paper)
2. Extend my required volunteering hours for AKPsi and make a different in the Madison community
3. Work out at least 3 days a week
4. Visit KU, WashU, or IU for an extended weekend
5. Read 10 books (not assigned for a course) for pleasure and blog about my thoughts
6. Dedicate at least two days each week towards sitting at the Terrace once the weather is not -100F below.
7. Bond with the staff at Brazen Careerist
8. Write at least 5 articles for the Daily Cardinal
9. Attend 1 play, 2 concerts of bands I enjoy/know, 2 concerts of artsy fartsy music that I have no idea about, and go to HUMO.
10. Add more goals to this list as they pop into my mind

Any other college students have goals that they would like to share?

Ok, I’ve got a sickness.

Blogger’s Block.

From the countless “how to blog” articles I’ve stumbled upon, Blogger’s Block is inevitable. As of now, I cannot think of a topic to write about. Sure, there’s social media- a topic 9,520,000 million write/Tweet/facebook about. I need to write about a topic that I know REALLY REALLY well. Something that will benefit those who read the blog, yet give me a form of self satisfaction and an outlet to vent.

Here’s an idea: talk about college.

No, not what college to go to or the best academic programs across the country. Let Kaplan and the Princeton Review do their jobs. I am talking about the little things in college-

• what to do when you have to manage a job while taking a full course load.
• how to deal with a TA who you cannot communicate with.
• a how-to on starting to drink coffee.
• dealing with changes in your friend groups
• boosting your final grade after you screw yourself over on a big test (yes, this happened to me last semester. luckily, I pulled myself out of a big fat F on my test and received an AB ((like an A- or B+ at UW-Madison))

These posts will be titled “Calls from College”. Why this? Well, during my freshman year at Madison I frequently called my high school friends to share and bounce situations off of each other. I found that some of the best advice I received came from my peers and not in a book or online.

Hopefully, I won’t be alone on this. I plan on asking a few of my friends to contribute to these branded blog posts. Some ideas of who I will contact (they will most likely kill me for revealing their names):

• My friend Bewie (http://www.twitter.com/elizabethridley) to talk about managing a successful long distance relationship.
• My friend and roommate Max (http://www.twitter.com/mgelderman) about succeeding in competitive college courses with hundreds of students enrolled
• My friend Sarah (http://www.twitter.com/sarah_temple) speaking about the ups and downs of transferring colleges

It’s going to be an open road and I don’t really have a destination about my writing. All I know is that I want to help others by sharing my own past and current experiences with college.

On February 2, 2010, I will be plopped in front of my living room. My TV will be set to PBS. And I am going to have a great time watching Digital Nation, a new Frontline documentary.

Earlier tonight, I watched a preview for Digital Nation and am excited to see what Rachel Dretzin and scholar Douglas Rushkoff will say about today’s Internet marketplace of ideas and personal expression. Considering that I communicate with my friends via Facebook and Twitter, learn about upcoming deadlines from my professors through email and have an internship with a startup social media company, I feel confident saying that I am connected to others through the Web.

Two years ago, I watched one Dretzin’s other documentaries, Growing Up Online, in a journalism course at UW-Madison. I looked at a few of the clips from the documentary earlier tonight and was stunned to see how social media has evolved in just two short years.

As I sat infront of my MacBook, a trend I saw in all of the interviews: fear of where information will end up.

In once scene, a mother is uncomfortable when thinking about the information that her teenage children post on Facebook. Now, flash forward to 2010 and look how Facebook has evolved. If you are a large corporation, you most likely have a Facebook Page to promote your company’s brand image. Facebook attracts both young and old. The playing field for social media has changed drastically since I watched Growing Up Online in J201.

I laughed as I watched this anxious mother fear the worst in social media. I did some searching and found a YouTube video from this mom, 1 year later, updating her stance on social media. One comment she had was, “Facebook’s great… I know the kids love it.” (adaptation to social media and internet communication at it’s finest). Her new stance is that families need a time to break free from online communication and get back to the basics with a simple dinner. I completely agree her and find myself sitting down for dinner with my family (when I am back from college) without having a TV on or reading the newspaper.

In my own opinion, I think that the messages we share online have expanded within the past two years. My online identity includes all aspects of my life, both personal and professional (both of which overlap at times). I know that my Facebook contains information about what I do with my friends as well as my past jobs. I read Brazen Careerist posts to gain insight about professional development and branding. With a few characters, I can share a video, either humorous or inspiring, with my Twitter followers.

On February 2nd, I am going to make some popcorn and watch a documentary about my generation. Will you?

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To learn more about Digital Nation, click here.

To learn more about Growing Up Online, click here

I encountered the question “what is Twitter” once again this weekend. After explaining my new social media addiction to a family friend, I asked myself one question: how did I use Twitter in 2009?

From a few simple tweets about sitting in class to communicating with my friends that live across the country, my Twittering (ok, is that even an appropriate Gerund ?) has evolved with time.Also, the individuals I follow have changed over the past few months. First, it was friends. Then, professors and some co-workers. Before I knew it, I followed news organizations, celebrities, university officials, bloggers, sports teams, athletes and even MY OWN MOTHER.

To ring in the new year, I decided that I would list the top five ways that I have found value in twitter (not ranked in any specific order).

1. TwitPic updates while sitting at an important event. When I was shooting video footage of Michael Pollan’s speech at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I took a quick picture and sent it to twitter. A few people replied saying that they saw me on the floor of the Kohl’s Center.
2. Staying on top of university news. UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin and academic deans like Lori Berquam update constantly update their Twitter feeds throughout the day. Their comments give a face and voice to the university’s administration. The New York Times even wrote an article about the connection Martin had with UW-Madison students via Twitter when the university was shut down due to severe weather. 
3. Learning about notable events in my friends’ lives. After a few months, most of my good friends from home use Twitter. When I couldn’t pick up the phone during a class, I read a tweet from one of my best friends explaining that she was selected for an important political internship.
4. Connecting with teachers outside of the classroom. Yes, teachers actually have lives outside of school and do not sleep under their desks. I frequently sent tweets towards one professor about academic and non-academic messages. Although we didn’t get along in terms of football teams (she’s a Packer fan and I am from Minnesota- you do the math), I felt that Twitter helped me to strengthen relationships with my professors.
5. Integrating my Twitter updates on other Web sites. Sites like Brazen Careerist allowed me to amplify my voice to different social circles. With a few hashtags here and there, I directed my messages to different outlets. For example, professional focused tweets used the #brazen function for Brazen Careerist while the #fb hashtag updated my Facebook status.

2010 will be an interesting year for social media and the Internet. With evolving dialogues and uses for different networks, I am excited to see what the new year will bring.

Now, I have one question for you: How did you use Twitter in 2009?

It’s 3:30 a.m. and I have to get up in 3 hours for a family ski trip. Considering the fact that I still cannot fall asleep after laying in bed for the past few hours, I thought I would share some of my current thoughts.

For some strange reason, I find myself being a tad bit pessimistic about social media’s impact around the world. As I read more and more blogs, I see that the line between opinion and pure factual information tends to be blurred.

Now, I am not saying that blogging is bad. Instead, I just want to bring up a simple question: what information can you trust from blogs and social media?

Mashable posted an article a few hours ago stating that over 15,000 people on Twitter label themselves as “social media experts.” When I read this, I guess I was not shocked in any way.

I could refer to myself as a “social media expert.” My online repertoire includes a Facebook, 2 Twitter accounts, a LinkedIn, a Brazen Careerist profile, two different blogs and multiple subscriptions to different blogfeeds/news updates. Still, I don’t think this label would be appropriate.

I don’t have a clear understanding of the long-term repercussions (both positive and negative) of using social media. I have not conducted any scientific research about Facebook or Twitter. So, I won’t call myself a “social media expert” - maybe “social media addict” or “king of procrastinating through social media” would suit me.

When I attempted to look up articles dealing with blogs and credibility, the majority of articles I found were from blogs themselves. This made my head spin round and round. How can I trust information from a blog or Twitter when I may not know who wrote constructed the information on a blog, status update, tweet. etc.

Still, blogging has power and fills a journalistic void as newsrooms find themselves with reduced budgets. The New York Times just posted an article about bloggers sitting front row at fashion show.

I don’t know what I think anymore. I need to go back to bed.

——-

To read the Mashable article about “social media experts”, click here

To read the NYT article about bloggers invading fashion shows, click here

My dad forwarded me a news article about Amanda Tatro, a University of Minnesota who recently was recently banned from the UMN campus because of her Facebook posts. The Star Tribune reported that Tatro, a mortuary science student, posted messages that others found disturbing and threatening. Specifically, she talked about using a trocar (sharp object used in the mortuary field) to take out her aggression in class.

Although I found the story disturbing, I started to ponder a few questions that I did not (still don’t, by the way) have the answers to.

• When can police and the law use material from social media outlets as evidence/reasoning for cases in the offline world?
• Is there a governing body that has created a standard of ethics for the law, stating when it is and is not appropriate to use online-based content for offline purposes?

Earlier this semester, a friend told me about a case in La Crosse, Wis. where police created a fake Facebook account and friended students at a local university to track their drinking habits. Some of the friended students were called into the police station and handed underage drinking citations.

I don’t believe that the police found the evidence of underage drinking in an ethical fashion. Making a false account on Facebook, in my opinion, is wrong and should not stem from the government. Don’t get me wrong when I say that making a fake account is wrong- I follow a few different TV characters on Twitter who don’t actually exist. It’s wrong, however, when the average person cannot distinguish the falsity of an identity online (Mashable posted an article on fake Facebook profiles).

As social media continues to grow and evolve, I feel that large changes in law and ethics will follow.

I might think twice the next time that I post my grumbles about schoolwork the next time that I log onto Facebook. Then again, I would probably talk about throwing my computer out a window instead of using sharp objects.

Read the Minneapolis Star Tribune article mentioned above by clicking here.

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