Does
having a different personality on social media lessen one’s integrity?
According to Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, “Having two identities
for yourself is an example of a lack of integrity.”
Having the ability to create a separate identity online
can be both beneficial and hurtful. Many people believe that being able to
create a completely separate identity online is controversial. On one hand, a
person as the ability to start fresh online, meaning that if they cannot fully
express their identity in real life, then they can do so online. But many look
at this almost as a way of “false advertisement”.
Much controversy has risen lately with Google+ when they
decided that all accounts would be deleted if the registered person did not use
their real name, but then quickly changed the rules and allowed people to have
their names be whatever they choose.
I feel that someone should be able to make whatever
identity they wish when logging online. There are plenty of circumstances where
someone does not have the ability in their lives to fully express who they want
to be, and that is where social media sites have allowed these people to
express themselves and find happiness.
Even though Google+ originally did not allow users to
have a profile without using their actual names, I think that they quickly
realized their mistake and transitioned back in a professional manner. I am a
firm believer in accepting responsibility and admitting when a mistake as been
made, so for Google+ to realize that they had made a mistake, I feel that they
should be commended for it, rather than reprimanded.
In response to Facebook’s founder and CEO, I feel that
just because someone has a separate identity online from their real-life
identity, it does not put their personal integrity in question. Just because
some people portray their lives differently online than they do on a day-to-day
basis, does not mean that they are putting their integrity on the line. There
are so many different reasons and circumstances in which cause people to
portray their lives differently online and who am I to judge that? I feel that
if someone wants to act different online, then they have every reason to be,
and if their followers don’t like it, then they can easily be deleted from
their friend lists. After all, it’s their online identity, which means they can
easily choose who can be a part of their online life!
-Marisa Strawn
