Emerald columnist Greg Dewar seems to assume that Facebook is the last place where commercial interests can prey upon the weak minds of college students (“New Facebook policy is anti-social,” ODE, April 27). I pass fliers, bulletins and ads every day on my way to
class — not to mention perky-faced activists who want me to sign this or that cause. We are a generation indoctrinated in the ways of advertising, and if the decline of MySpace has proved anything, we don’t like it when we’re reminded of how crass the Internet can be.
Maybe Facebook users should stop worrying about how their “education, work, current city, hometown” and “likes and interests” will be exploited and discover the world outside their computer screens. When people create a Facebook account, they enter into a contract with a company: In exchange for ephemeral connections with our “friends,” Facebook will sell your information to advertisers. If people are so upset about that, maybe they should meet some real friends who aren’t hell-bent on getting them to see “Clash of the Titans.”
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