By now you’ve probably heard the story of the woman in the Netherlands who got a tattoo on her arm showing the faces of all her Facebook friends. And by now you’ve probably also heard that it’s a hoax. Many of the more than two million people who viewed the video on YouTube commented to express their views on getting a permanent reminder of a passing fad.
Let’s try a little exercise. Read the following sentence:
“A woman in the Netherlands got a tattoo of all her Facebook friends on her arm and it became an international news story.”
Now read this one:
“A woman in the Netherlands got a tattoo of all her friends on her arm and it became an international news story.”
I don’t think so.
I live in a town where I see odder tattoos nearly every day. I remember seeing a guy years ago who had tattoos all over both legs, including a crossed knife and fork, and a cow hiding behind a giant piece of broccoli. When I tended bar in London last century, I saw a young punk on the King’s Road with “GLASGOW” tattooed across his forehead. “”So where are you from? Oh, never mind.””
In the annals of tattooing, getting your friends’ faces on your arm could actually be considered charming and sweet. But add the word “Facebook” and it’s a scandal and an outrage.
I’m immersed in this every day so I get tired of the hype machine that tacks “social media” or “Facebook” onto what are essentially phenomena that have always existed. Houses got robbed, people got stalked, photos got misused and people got fired for saying stupid things long before social media came along. Unfortunately, it’s the hype machine that plants the idea in people’s minds “including executives of enterprise companies who should be getting value out of social media” that social media is evil and dangerous.
Social media is just another way of communicating. It’s a set of tools and, to a certain extent, a philosophy of sharing and openness. But it’s not a religion. It’s not a political movement. One day the novelty will have worn off, the fears will have subsided and social media tools will be just a normal part of our lives, like the telephone and the Internet.
“But then what will we blog about?”