Somebody's eyes are watching you
Sarah Zeeck
Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: Opinion
Courtney Love has taken her shenanigans to a technological level. According to CNN.com, she had to delete her Twitter account this week because she "tweeted" libelous remarks against a fashion designer, who is now pressing charges. Derogatory tweets from Love about this woman included that she had dealt cocaine in her past.
No one should blame this woman. Had any one of us been the target for Love's loose-lipped (or typed) remarks, we would have been outraged as well. That's human nature; of course people don't want to be insulted, especially in the cyber world.
This case is receiving more publicity because of those involved, but the same issues plague us common folk, too. In the same report from CNN, one woman was sued for defamatory remarks she made via Facebook in regard to her apartment. She was sued for $50,000 in damages.
Consider this: have you ever updated your Facebook status with a livid, insulting remark in a fit of anger?
There are no clear-cut laws where the Internet is concerned. Is a tweet, blog entry or status update considered "speech" or "published material?" It is written out, but is it comparable to something you have said? Either way, slanderous and libelous comments are unprofessional. And the old saying may go that "nothing lasts forever," but what you spew into cyberspace does, whether you like it or not.
Think about your current situation now. In a few years, possibly even next year, you will seek out a job. You will look for a new home. You will move on with your life. Do you honestly think that an employer will hire you if he or she saw that you made juvenile comments about a colleague or professor? Do you expect to be hired if your profile picture is of you doing a keg stand or taking a beer bong? Not likely.
We would like to think blocking our profiles to the furthest extent will protect us against this kind of situation, but refined hackers can break through those barriers. People can be malicious.
Though 25 years beyond and nowhere near the totalitarian society Orwell envisioned, in some aspects we aren't that far off. You may not have an obvious camera in your living room watching your every move, but in very unobtrusive ways, Big Brother is still watching you. Watch your actions. Guard your words. Protect your privacy before it unveils itself over the World Wide Web.
No one should blame this woman. Had any one of us been the target for Love's loose-lipped (or typed) remarks, we would have been outraged as well. That's human nature; of course people don't want to be insulted, especially in the cyber world.
This case is receiving more publicity because of those involved, but the same issues plague us common folk, too. In the same report from CNN, one woman was sued for defamatory remarks she made via Facebook in regard to her apartment. She was sued for $50,000 in damages.
Consider this: have you ever updated your Facebook status with a livid, insulting remark in a fit of anger?
There are no clear-cut laws where the Internet is concerned. Is a tweet, blog entry or status update considered "speech" or "published material?" It is written out, but is it comparable to something you have said? Either way, slanderous and libelous comments are unprofessional. And the old saying may go that "nothing lasts forever," but what you spew into cyberspace does, whether you like it or not.
Think about your current situation now. In a few years, possibly even next year, you will seek out a job. You will look for a new home. You will move on with your life. Do you honestly think that an employer will hire you if he or she saw that you made juvenile comments about a colleague or professor? Do you expect to be hired if your profile picture is of you doing a keg stand or taking a beer bong? Not likely.
We would like to think blocking our profiles to the furthest extent will protect us against this kind of situation, but refined hackers can break through those barriers. People can be malicious.
Though 25 years beyond and nowhere near the totalitarian society Orwell envisioned, in some aspects we aren't that far off. You may not have an obvious camera in your living room watching your every move, but in very unobtrusive ways, Big Brother is still watching you. Watch your actions. Guard your words. Protect your privacy before it unveils itself over the World Wide Web.
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