Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Tough Crowd

According to social media quizzes, I am a social maniac. I participate in various forms of social media and I enjoy it. Connecting with others is critical to my survival. Social media helps keep me close to family and friends but also introduces me to others with similar interests.

The downfall, I believe, of all of social media is the compartmentalization of people. We categorize our friends and family and acquaintances by how much information we want them to know or the aspect of our lives into which they fit best. And for someone who has regularly brought all of her worlds together into one space, this division creates a challenge.

I am not allowed to be my work self and my ethnic self and my sports loving self in the same space. The audience that has connected with me online based on my interest in baseball doesn't want to hear my rants about the advertising industry. The group of people who love me for my musical affinity doesn't want to read retweets about Native American news. And the inability to fit into one category hinders connections that might otherwise flourish.

The reality of social media is... y'all are one tough crowd. The purpose is supposed to be to connect an unite but all too often it is isolating and divisive.