Social media influence people’s lives positively and negatively, however, personal views influence the judgments of authors.
Keen in “Sharing is a Trap” and Jarvis in “Get Over It” present contradictory views on technological advancements and social media. Keep identifies social networking as a threat to human privacy and private life. He argues that living without privacy is living without a fundamental part of being human. Jarvis provides supporting arguments for the positive role of social media and technology. He claims that surviving without technology is impossible and part of human evolution.
In his article “Sharing is a Trap” Andrew Keen portrays the importance of privacy in people’s lives. He criticizes the role of social media as it constantly threatens the privacy of humans. The author believes that living without privacy is a fundamental part of humanity. The author emphasizes independence and freedom. Keen argues that personal sharing of life and personal things deprives people of privacy. The things that people do on the internet remain open to others. The author argues that social networking changed the idea of private life as everyone’s life on social websites like Facebook and Twitter is public (Keen).
Jeff Jarvis’s article “Get Over It” displays the positive side of social media. The author argues that pooling data does not threaten privacy it is part of human evolution. Jarvis’s emphasis is more on highlighting the advantages of technological advancements. He believes that surviving without technology and evolution is impossible. The author displays concerns about privacy as it eliminates the opportunities to connect with others. He identifies the issues as a privacy crisis that minimizes the benefits. Social media has benefits as it connects people, allowing them to share information and make friends. He recognizes the life-saving role of social media and technology (Jarvis).
In his article, keen uncovers issues related to privacy. The diminishing concept of private and domestic life remains the central issue in Keen’s article. He also argues the concept of perfection illustrated by Bentham. Using string claims strengthens his argument, “in Bentham’s perfectly efficient and transparent world, there would be nowhere for anyone to hide” (Keen). Eliminating privacy has influenced every aspect of human life and has built relevance with Foucault’s claim that “visibility is a trap.” Another issue highlighted in the article includes the disconnection from reality. Social media allows people to build their secondary lives that are unrealistic and imaginative.
Jarvis identifies the issues of extensive privacy setups and their impact on human lives. Limiting the power of sharing negatively impacts knowledge as people have fewer opportunities for gaining information. Privacy discourages openness and supports censorship and overregulation. Privacy threatens benefits associated with technology, “we collaborate through openness. We are learning how to use our new tools to organize movements” (Jarvis). He uses his personal experience of surgery to support his argument as technology allowed him to convince other people to get checkups.
The two authors disagree on the uses and misuse of technology. Keep recognizes the potential risks associated with social media while Jarvis identifies the positive aspects significant for human growth. Keen emphasis on enhancing privacy and limiting the concept of sharing. Jarvis disagrees with Keen’s views and reveals the adverse impacts of privacy (Lake). Both authors provide claims to support their arguments but fail to address some issues. Keen throughout his article discourages the use of technology and emphasizes privacy but he fails to consider the concept of development associated with social media. Jarvis fails to address concepts of protection as people without privacy are open to everyone.
Work Cited
JARVIS, JEFF. Get over it. 2011. 25 Feb 2018 <http://www.wired.co.uk/article/get-over-it>.
KEEN, ANDREW. Sharing is a trap. 2011. 25 Feb 2018 <http://www.wired.co.uk/article/sharing-is-a-trap>.
LAKE, LAURA. Understanding the Role of Social Media in Marketing. 2017. 25 Feb 2018 <https://www.thebalance.com/understanding-the-role-of-social-media-in-marketing-2296140>
