Is It Time to Delete Facebook?

When I opened my laptop the other day and started my traditional newsgathering, I came across a disturbing story. Marine sergeant Gary Stein posted anti-Obama sentiments on his Facebook page and is now facing an "other than honorable discharge" from the military. This case raises a lot of questions. Do military officials have the right to criticize his or her commander-in-chief? Does being in the military mean sacrificing your First Amendment right to freedom of speech? Should a marine sergeant receive an "other than honorable" discharge just for something he posted on Facebook?

As a journalism student, any mention of possible denial of First Amendment rights instantly makes my ears perk up. However, my interest turned quickly to annoyance when I came across one word in the article: Facebook. I cannot recall how many times I have stumbled across a news story detailing a person's misuse of Facebook, especially when that person was not for whom Facebook was originally intended.

Facebook has become an incredible empire. The company just acquired Instagram, a photography social media network for $1 billion, and is valued at $100 billion as a whole. I think it is important to pause here and think. As the pioneer of social media networks with roughly 800 million members, Facebook affects a lot of us. I have a Facebook page and just about everyone I know does as well. However, it was not originally meant for all of us. In 2003, Mark Zuckerberg, an undergraduate student, created Facebook as an experiment in a Harvard University dorm room. The point of Facebook was to capture the social experience of college and put it online, specifically the social experience at Harvard. Facebook was technically created by a college student for other college students. Today, one seventh of the world population has a Facebook page. It has grown tremendously and, in some cases, has had horrifying consequences for people it was never meant to reach.

On January 2nd, 15-year-old Amanda Cummings stepped in front of an oncoming bus with a suicide note in hand and later died at a Staten Island hospital as a result of the collision. Cummings was a victim of bullying. She was ridiculed by a group of girls who used Facebook as a platform for comments and messages. To say the least, this was a gross misuse of the site by teenage girls for which it was not originally made. What is sad is there are so many stories like this.

I think it is time to reevaluate Facebook. Most stories we read concerning incidents, lawsuits or tragic endings involving Facebook usually concern people for whom Facebook was not made (i.e. anyone other than a college student). I suggest we take Facebook back to its intended purpose, and require a person to be enrolled in a college or university in order to be a member of the website. In my opinion, it is quite reckless of society to let minors have a Facebook because they are not adults, and Facebook, as we have seen in the media, has adult consequences.

As for Sgt. Stein, I agree with the Marine Corps' suggestion. Facebook was never intended to be a public forum for political views. It is a social media site and though we all might be guilty of misusing it from time to time, we need to take it back to basics. This means catching up with old friends, posting funny YouTube videos and reminiscing about the weekend. If we, as a global community, are not responsible enough to use Facebook, then maybe it is time to deactivate our account.

 

Follow Kaitlyn Ridel on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@katyridel

Comments

[anpajo]

04:12 PM on 04/26/2012

President Obama: Sergeant Stein of the US Marines goofed and made the serious mistake..not in
HAVING possibly obnoxious feelings about your leadership, but the Sgt. Published same personal
feelings on FACEBOOK. So , he was given less than Honorable discharge, reduced in Rank and
had his government entitlements removed also. Go back short time and General McNichol was
apparently giving the same kind of reviews about not only your leadership but also some negative
remarks about some cabinet members also. You called the general to white house and removed
him from is post as top commander Iraq/Afghanistan. The General 'retired' at full rank, honorably
discharged, with all gov. entitlements. WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? Both men made
same mistake. The General retired with all benefits...the Sergeant was thrown under a bus.
Please restore Sgt.Stein's Rank, Honorable discharge and benefits...if you believe in equal justice.

[superspiffy]

03:48 PM on 04/23/2012

I joined Facebook when I was in college - and when you still needed an "approved" college email to register. Since then, I have graduated and moved away. Should I be obligated to give up a connection to some of my college peers simply because I no longer attend that school? How does your narrow definition of users reflect people like me? Are you planning on deleting your account the minute you take off the hat and gown? I doubt it. People simply need to take a more critical view of what they post on their account. If you wouldn't want your parent/teacher/pastor/SO/etc. reading it, don't post it. It's a very simple concept and if you haven't figured it out yet, well, presumably you will get a very harsh wake-up call in the future.

[Widespread Panic]

11:03 AM on 04/22/2012

Think twice before posting something online, it can come back to haunt you. This is the information age, and has been for a while, people should know this by now.

[Allosaur2010]

01:46 PM on 04/20/2012

You give up your right to free speech as soon as you sign up for the military. You get it back when you leave. Until then you salute Obama and call him "sir". The. End.

[acumenguy]

01:48 AM on 04/21/2012

I was going to post the same comment, but, you beat me to it.

[Widespread Panic]

11:01 AM on 04/22/2012

Exactly.

[Jonathan Cairo Ender]

11:54 AM on 04/20/2012

I like that Kaitlyn brought attention to Facebook's original purpose which I think is a valid point, but as times change, so do websites and their users. I do think however that you should be at least 18 to be on Facebook for the fact it can have adult consequences as it was stated.

I can appreciate the point that Kaitlyn's making by saying maybe we should get rid of Facebook, but I don't believe she literally means to delete your account, rather than be more cognizant of what you do and post on it and how it can translate to others potentially. You need to be an intelligent user because of how much information surrounds social media and how information can spread like wildfire.

[aubonpain]

08:07 PM on 04/19/2012

Is this truly ANOTHER appeal whereby we must be told by some government entity what we may or may not do? Isn't it enough that I am told what lightbulbs to use, what food to eat, what healthcare to buy, what car to drive, that government will monitor my car starting in 2015, on and on. Where does it stop?

[Glory Mooncalled]

07:14 PM on 04/19/2012

I feel sorry for the people that don't grasp the concept of anything you put on the internet is up for grabs by anyone with an internet connection. Forever.
What FB does is broadcast information I do not intentionally give away-like using my ISP provider's location to post my city every time I write on my page. That's not right. If I wanted everyone to know where I lived, I would have freely given that information away in the info page. And they are constantly changing your settings so your privacy this week is a stalker's dream next week. And then, try leaving. You can't close your account. It's like the Hotel California.

[melaniekama]

06:18 PM on 04/19/2012

Saying FB is only for college students is a bit narrow. I joined FB after my 2nd child was born. My parents and my husband's parents, both divorced, and their new spouses, all joined. Suddenly, keeping up with all of the grandparents was as easy as selecting photos and clicking 'upload' or posting a status update, "d just walked!" Sure I have to check my security settings regularly because FB changes their privacy rules so often, but it's still far easier than what I used to do. Most of my friends on FB are parents now as well, who love FB for the same reason, it makes it easy to stay connected to friends and family who don't live nearby. My daughter also has a FB page (an author page, not a personal page, as she's too young to have a personal account). She's been an environmental/animal activist since she was only 5. She recently published her 1st book and uses her page to keep people informed about things like the Lost Ladybug Project and ways to make less trash. Her father and I are the only admins so she has to go through us to post anything, but she loves being able to get information out. We did go over a series of lessons with her available for free from Common Sense Media for K-12, that discuss appropriate use of the internet/social media. Two of topics are your digital footprint and bullying. I highly recommend them.

[SueZbell]

12:01 AM on 04/19/2012

Never put anything "out there" on the web that you would be unwilling for everyone to know--disregard that caution at your potential future peril--possibly personally and/or economically.

[Pamela Rossow]

10:53 PM on 04/18/2012

I agree with what you are saying regarding using Facebook "responsibly" and not posting harmful, hateful or disrespectful items. However, to say that Facebook should rewind and only be reserved for college students sounds similar to attempting to censor the Internet--improbable and unrealistic. What we need to do as parents is to teach our children to use any and all social media outlets responsibly--and hope they do so. In an era of globalization and the sharing of data disseminating faster than most viruses, we cannot just bury our heads in the sand. There are many perks and benefits to using social media to promote our businesses, certain social issues etc. Of course, if we do not like reading the political, philosophical, sports, spiritual and/or intellectual views of others on social media sites, we can choose not to be on Twitter, have a Facebook account or Stumble and Digg. Oh--better stop reading books, too. They can be very dangerous!

[lovelyliberalchick]

08:56 PM on 04/18/2012

If you are not doing business online stay away from facebook.

[houseofvespucci]

01:05 AM on 04/18/2012

Facebook is a platform, however, it is up to people to use the platform responsibly. However, since Facebook is a business consumers have the ability to mold it through support or non support, request for changes etc. just like any other product or service. If legally people use the platform for ill intent, Facebook should not be held liable and vice versa.

[J R M]

01:03 AM on 04/18/2012

Assume everything you post on Facebook is attached to your resume.

I don't have a FB account - I do computer security and am too paranoid.

[overcat]

12:53 AM on 04/18/2012

While originally FB was for college students, those days are long gone and not coming back. Some people create problems for themselves by saying things on FB, much as some people create problems for themselves by saying things in person. Facebook is what you make it.

[goku7675]

12:31 AM on 04/18/2012

Good article with interesting observations.