Elections are right around the corner and we all seem to be getting excited. With all the anticipation, most social media users are getting on their soap boxes and taking a stand. Everyone uses facebook as a way to inform their fellow users on the latest political scandal, poll results, or whatever the latest news on candidates is. So here is the real question: Is it ok for facebook users to use their personal page as a so called ‘loud speaker’ for the upcoming election?
The most popular answer to this question would probably be that we have a right to free speech and can say anything we please on our social media sight. While this is completely true, there comes a time we have to take into consideration the users around us. Could there be anyone creeping on our facebook page that we don’t know about? Say, future employers or even our current bosses? I talked about this a little last week and still think it has major importance when it comes to peoples political agenda’s.
We often see republicans and democrats ranting and raving over facebook statuses, comments, or even groups about current issues. During election time, this increases significantly. Users will post videos on the candidates they support, often times bashing their opponents. Even making rude comments about their opposing political parties on their status’. This can get down right nasty and be quite annoying for those of us whose feeds get clogged with the drama. Not to mention, future or current employers could ‘creep’ on your facebook at anytime and see this. Some may say, “why is this a big deal?” Well, what if you are a die hard republican and posting rude status’ about the democrat party but your company is a democratic one? You represent the company you work for, and they might not appreciate you bashing their party or vis versa over social media for all to see.
I am not saying we should all stop being political over social media. This is a passionate topic that many care about. I am simply suggesting we talk about the issues in a better, more polite manner. Instead of getting on our soap box and bashing the opposite party, lets look at each candidate as an individual and not a reflection of a political party. It is ok to research each candidate and see what they are about. We can present the information we support in a non bias way that wont offend other users, or our employers.
Gemma, I agree with you completely. There are so many people pointing the finger at the opposing side that those who don’t follow politics just go along with what they hear, leading to many voters being misinformed. Your post also made me wonder why people feel the need to express such strong political over social networks. It is not productive and like you said, it could hinder employment in certain fields.
This is such a hot topic right now because, like yours, my Facebook and Twitter feeds are flooded with political opinions and rants. It does get very irritating, but on the other hand, I kind of like to see people at least involved in the political process. It’s good to see young people so passionate, but I do think it sometimes crosses the line. Employers likely say they won’t base a hiring decision on some political opinions they saw on your social media site, but how can we really know? A potential employer may be very far left and you might post very far right things on your page. If they see this, they can say they didn’t base their decision on these findings, but do we really know? Can they really “un-see” something on your page and claim not to use it against you? It’s a complicated question and there seems to be no dead set answer. I’d say it’s unfair to have to change who you are and keep your opinions to yourself, but that might just be the way this modern day social media crazed world has to be. You wouldn’t hand out Romney bumper stickers at a job interview, but flaunting your views and opinions on a public social media site might be just the same.
Before Professor Dave had mentioned that that this topic would be a great blog topic, I had already thought about this. I mean I have seen so many politicians related posts’ all over my Twitter timeline and it gets ugly. I agree with you on the simple fact that social media shouldn’t be completely excluded from politicians, but it can be done it an more polite/ professional manner. However, there are many “fake” Twitter accounts with the Presidents candidates as their profile picture saying that they are the president in their bio. I’ve definitely noticed alot of fake pages being re-tweeted on my timeline with harsh negative commentary in them. For the people who don’t realize that these pages are fake; it can be offensive to them. (Especially depending on what these post are saying). Social media should be used as a positive tool for elections and people ruin it.
I hate to constantly talk negatively about social media, but the negativity seems to stand out the most. I can’t tell you how many times I have watched “E News” and they’ve talked about what bad things a celebrity is tweeting; totally ignoring the positive points.
To conclude, I think politicians should steer away from social media and try to promote in other ways….
Gemma,
I believe the main point that you’re trying to get across in your post is the idea of social media etiquette. In today’s society, I believe that people do not take into consideration what they post on their social media pages. The idea that “my post could offend someone” does not come into play when blasting an opinion. This is where social media etiquette comes into play. I am a firm believer is treating others the way you would want to be treated, whether that be verbally or physically. When it comes to politics, any form of ranting and raving is going stir some sort of controversy. We as a community really need to take into consideration the way our words/posts affect potential employers, professors and others around us. Ponder before posting 😉