I was going to write something about Facebook’s new open graph announcement, and how it seriously compromised my own privacy.
But then I started thinking about the wider applications of a search function that basically allows you to delve into the lives of others, pick out their ideas, pictures, comments, and then splash them about wherever you desire. On the cover of a magazine, as the star of the latest hilarious montage on Buzzfeed…
My conservative, Western upbringing feels a bit queasy about the whole “what’s mine is yours, what’s yours is mine, unless I tell you otherwise” proposition, but how awesome is it to know that every single person in the world now has the ability to sway, or contribute to the mainstream news, and to be discovered by millions of people who might be looking to connect with people who are doing exactly what they are doing?! PRETTY AWESOME!
Journalists – whether they are searching for an unflattering image of a celebrity, a profile shot of the victim of a recent tragedy, or simply collating people’s images of the latest freak snow fall – will LOVE on this open graph concept.
And at the same time, businesses, brands and people will THRIVE if they apply journalistic skills of story-telling and news values to their posts.
Many experts have touted 2013 as the year that journalists are employed as social media page managers for companies looking to achieve cut-through online.
They have also said that journalism will become increasingly reliant on social media.
It would seem the new Open Graph feature fulfills this prophecy, and will also open more than a few doors for businesses, and journos alike.
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