After reading the article by David Gold, Merideth Garcia, and Anna V. Knutson, I started thinking just how much of our writing is in the public eye, even if we don’t think of ourselves as writers.Students already participate in writing in a public world through posts on Instagram, social media, and other digital platforms, as claimed by Gold, Garcia, and Knutson.On the other hand, this can cause anxieties because audiences, our privacy online, and authority are out of our control.
Persistance and Permeability
A topic I always find myself drawn to is the persistence of what it means to have an online presence. When we post something online, it remains there forever. This becomes most relevant to college students because classmates, professors, and employers may see anything we post years later. However, on the same wavelength, I like the authors’ take that persistence doesn’t have to be negative. Due to this persistence we can save pictures, writing, and memories can also be valuable.
Another concept that stood out to me was the idea of “permeability,” mostly because I didn’t know what it meant. Now I know what it means; I also like the concept of it even more. I notice that people will behave differently when it comes to who they’re talking to. Although social media brings all those audiences together, so…how are you supposed to act? People we didn’t mean to see an innocent post meant to only be seen by friends might view it.
All in all, the article made me hyperaware of how vulnerable we are online and how carefully we communicate. As a communications major, it is my ultimate dream to go public one day and, by doing this, get my voice out there. However, it does provoke me to think carefully about my audience, how to maintain my privacy, and how my words will exist till the end of time.
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