Out of Control?

Growing up, I was always taught that life is what you make of it. Everything in life is a choice. Our choices define who we are, how others see us and, essentially, how we experience the world. This thinking implies that we as individuals possess an agency that only we are in control of. If everything’s good, it’s because we choose to make it that way. If things aren’t so good, it’s also our fault. Nobody imposes anything on us that we don’t allow them to. 

But what if that isn’t really the case?

The article from this week on Pew Research regarding how people view online activity as helpful, harmful or solution bearing made me think a little more about agency and personal choice. During the group activity, I was assigned the harmful viewpoint. I took time to carefully read over the different ways that online activity is believed to impact how we think about ourselves, how we think about ourselves, and how the world around us works. My first reaction was skepticism. I grew up watching my mom use MSN Messenger. I had a Yahoo Chat before I reached middle school. Social networking and online activity has been a nearly permanent fixture in my life. However, after reading the different responses for how harmful online activity can be… I found myself not disbelieving any of them. 

Were some of them a little overreaching? I think so. But none of the points were completely baseless. The truth is that, in my experience, the online experience has just as much potential for bad as it does for good. The way I see myself has certainly been shaped by what I see on Facebook and Instagram. Social networking impacts the personal, professional and consumer decisions I make. 

And as far as the world I live in? The most haunting point brought up by the harmful viewpoints was that online activity will potentially “invite ever-evolving threats to human interaction, security, democracy, jobs, privacy and more.” This feels big. This is about more than just what shirt I buy from American Eagle. This is about the world. And I can’t help but feeling that, if this is true, then things might be a little out of my control. Yes, I choose to read Buzzfeed and follow Twitter. But threatening democracy? This isn’t a choice I wanted to make. 

Take a minute to check out this video by Vlogbrothers about Facebook and the Cambridge Analytica breach. It might make you think a little more about the control you give away when you choose to be online. 

Tell me more about how you feel online life and social networking affect your sense of control over yourself and the world around you in the comments.