The internet is free for audiences to some extent - In the sense, the man who created the internet monetarily made it free for the public to use. It is an open source which is available for everyone; once something has been put up, it is accessible for everyone. This has both its advantages and disadvantages. The negative being, if something false, hurtful, illegal is put up, everyone can view/use it.
Social networking is the most common use of the internet which has a versatile audience. Facebook is the most popular website with the most users (with Twitter increasingly catching up). Facebook is used to interact with people – post pictures, updates and view others. Some people grow so attached to these sites that Tim Berners says it’s as though Facebook traps is users in a bubble and is restrictive as to what its audience can do.
The characteristics and functions of Facebook is one way, in which the internet can appear ‘not free’ (restrictive) – because there’s limited things a person can do, yet users find it addictive.
Tim Berners warns that ‘Facebook and other social networking sites represent threats to the future of the world wide web.’ I think this is because they have become the most predominantly used website and people are left “walled” in the site.
The more a person uses social networking websites, the more they become locked in – it becomes a central platform to their life – (Like brushing your teeth in the morning or combing ones hair, it’s almost as though, social networking has become an equal necessity).
There isn’t much control as to what you share because once something has been published, Facebook keeps a record.
The internet in general is fairly free as to what is searched, on the other hand social networks in general are restrictive.
Kiran Hussain
