Do you ever look back at the days when the words “Facebook” and “Twitter” weren’t even in our vocabulary? Or even when the phrase “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” had a funny yet innocent connotation? We have entered a realm of online media that is here to stay and it will gradually begin to reinvent itself as new technologies emerge. Social media acts as a springboard into a person’s private life and all things they find entertaining. It allows users to be the journalist and document stories and happenings as they are taking place by posting them on the Internet, creating for a worldwide lack of privacy. Cameras, Smartphone’s and other handheld devices are people’s weapons. They pull the trigger every single time they capture someone, somewhere doing one thing or another. These pictures then get posted online through Facebook or Twitter and there is usually a name that is tagged along with the incriminating photo. While it may seem like fun and games at the time, little do users know that potential employers, coaches or really anyone that can browse the web can find these images when they search his or her name.
An article written by the Huffington Post stated that 80% of college admissions officers use Facebook to check out potential students prior to their acceptance. Officials at colleges and universities are running a “background” check on these students by checking their social media presence before recruiting them. However, some potential students have used their social media presence to their advantage by following the colleges and universities on Twitter, Facebook and by creating personal blogs to displays their talents. Through these platforms these students can “like” the schools of their choice and students can post stories or videos showing their skills that schools can build upon if the student is accepted. These social media attributes add credibility to the students and it allows them to stand out from all of the other candidates that applied to their competitive universities.
Jillian Unitas
Flagler College Communications Major
