Facebook and Cultural Expression

I thought my remarks on cultural expression today in class regarding the notion of participatory culture and cultural expression were right on target. I discussed Facebook as major communication outlet. Facebook is a form of cultural expression. Facebook started out small solely for college students and now has become a major communication outlet that reaches everyone. It has become a huge part of our culture. My friend’s parents who are not even up to snuff with modern technology even have Facebook. People have moved from being just a spectator of media such as the internet to an actual participant ie participatory culture. Anyone can broadcast their lives on the internet now thanks to Facebook. Back before Facebook, some individuals were just observers of media and the internet. Now we can actually utilize this media outlet to see what people look like, who they are associating with, where they have been, where they are going, and even a current status of what they are doing at the present time. Facebook can depict a lot about a person’s social life, indicate the various activities an individual is engaging in, and indicate various aspects about an individual's hobbies. It connects people who have similar interests in clubs and organizations.

I used to be a spectator and now have evolved to a participant since I am a user of Facebook. Facebook is advertised everywhere and has become so huge over the past few years. Facebook highlights political views, relationship status, personal information, contact information, as well as photographs of the individual. It’s a great social networking tool and actually does connect you connect with the people around you via school or location. It really helps with personal connections. Our society is culturally dependent on the internet as a resource tool. And, Facebook has contributed to this because it connects people all around the world.