Harriston+K+Blog+Post+Analysis

Harriston K.

TO: Social Networking Team FROM: Kendra Harriston SUBJECT: Just What Kind Of Information Are You Posting On Facebook?

We were asked to analyze a blog post for the Proximity spring focus group. Below is my summary of //The Clarion-Ledger// article on how students, especially college students may be posting things on Facebook that could be considered "too much information." I suggest we include questions during the focus group that concentrate on determining whether Towson University students are careful about what they post online.

**When Is It Considered "TMI?" (Too Much Information)** Within the past year, more and more people have become members of the ever growing social networking site "Facebook," including adults. With an increased amount of adults joining, that means more people may see what you are posting, and in some cases the information a person may post could jeopardize his/her chance at a job, or even joining a school sports team. An example of this happened while a group of football prospects visited Mississippi State University. Some of the prospects had posted on a social networking site that they were visiting an adult establishment near Starkville, Mississippi. However, even though one prospect said it was a joke, Mississippi State officials later discovered that some of the recruits did actually visit an "establishment deemed impermissible."

When you're on a social networking site, there tends to be next to no privacy. Everyone needs to be careful about what they say, and do on these particular sites. When college level recruiters and coaches go out looking for new prospects, they will sometimes use Facebook and Twitter to get information out and see what the prospects are like. According to Southern Miss women's basketball coach Joye Lee-McNeils, "Sometimes the things you see on there are the things that make you wonder if you want that kind of person in your program. It's a big factor." Now coaches are trying to discuss this issue to their players. Tupelo girls basketball coach Stephanie Murphy thinks that whether her girls "are off campus, on campus, or on social networks, they need to carry themselves in a manner that represents the school well. Even though it's their own right to privacy, I advice them not to put anything on [social networking sites] that's inappropriate." **
 * Why You Should Watch What You Type?

Source: []
 * **While on sites like Facebook and Twitter, do you have certain privacy settings in place?**
 * **Do you post whatever you want on social networking sites, or are you selective about it?**
 * **If you have a job or are on a sports team, are you friends with your boss or coach on a social network site? If so, do you think they go though all the stuff you post online?**