The Facebook Effect, by David Kirkpatrick

you are holding the flashlight as we decipher uncover the cave painting

Clear result of recession; people aren't busy and spending time on faceboook is inexpensive

if unemployment rates rising are to blame (credit), it jives nicely with the growth facebook is seeing in 30 - 45 demo...

Recent changes in the Facebook UI blur the lines separating one-to-one exchanges that we expect to be private and one-to-many broadcasts. There was no coordination in the rollout of these changes, and no standard "prudent" configuration of privacy settings for beginners. Lots of new users found themselves unexpectedly discussing personal health or relationship worries out in the open. They looked foolish. Not a nice thing to do to customers who can play elsewhere.

I dunno, Rob, but count me among the paranoid. You want to buy me a drink, but first I have to tell you who my friends are? Seriously, try finding any sober discussion of personal security practices in Facebook documentation. Facebook is a culture of promiscuity, not prudence, and new Chlamydia vectors appear with every new app. Maybe prospective ... Read MoreFriends themselves should come with Seals of Approval? "Neither I nor anyone I'll admit as a Friend will give up your name to the Stasi."

I predict that a future definition for "going off the grid" will describe someone taking proactive steps to erase himself from his social graph.

Here's the news story: http://bit.ly/gJeNF

Yeah... ultimately, I think its still too soon to see the true direction of twitter without the biasing affects of PR and buzz. I've embraced the facebook SMS functionality though. I guess it just feels more natural when you *know* the person you are communicating with rather than random strangers online. I canceled my twitter account when some porn spam company started "following me"... it creeped me out.

David, as I've said before your onto something that also has philosophical implicaions particularly with regard to solitude and intimacy, both of which receive a good drubbing on Facebook. But I am always for evolution, since there really is no choice and it will be interesting to see the migratory patterns of human consciousness.

go orange!

One of the challenges with Twitter is the game that most everyone gets sucked into of # followers, # following -- that takes priority over quality most of the time. So people don't follow if there aren't the 'right' numbers -- whatever that is. Facebook will be more appealing if there isn't that game getting in the way of quality exchange. Right now though Twitter is a lot more fun than Facebook for those of us who want to meet new people -- that has to change, too.

Right, I think FB will have to take great care with controls that transition between the symmetrical bonding with 'friends' and the asymmetrical relationship with 'others' that follow without reciprocation. And yes, the current "everybody" set (settings>privacy>profile>shared item) is too buried and too broad a brush to enable a twitter-like ... Read Moreexchange. There are major complications of managing two lists of contacts (known and unknown) and a modal switch in the way posts are shared in one model verses the other. Perhaps there is brand strengthening value in Facebook owning the word "Friends" and not trying to also own "Followers". I'm on-stage on Twitter. I can come home to Facebook.

... another interesting finding: Only 67% of the respondents said they use a social networking site at all. Potential growth appears to remain for MySpace and/or facebook here.

i read it yesterday and was wondering why you had not posted it....such a fun job

Very cool David, is this the current edition of Newsweek? You have revolutionized my life by introducing me to Facebook, but I am losing my solitude. Will I still want to read Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet, Steppenwolf, Lermontov. Much love Frank

An interesting point Juan. I suspect that in a global service there will be a convergence toward global standards for such things. Given that's its an American-led service, an anti-nudity bias, for instance, is likely to prevail over a more European tolerance. What will be the impact on social mores generally as Facebook and other global services become more and more pervasive?

Are random acts of hugs also on the rise? I've been getting hugs from people that never gave them.

Thanks!

my students have hugged me for years but since I have had to use a cane I often get pushes and kicks in public. the classic tales of older woman bum rushing the bus or subway; or 20somethings thugging a place... I would rather queue or get a seat .. random acts of hugs ... in the NYC/NJ commuter world..

I was doing it but better Facebook does it for me. Thanks for this great info

Reunion.com has that kind of plan and the basic one is so bad that I pulled out ASAP, not only because the system was spamming every e-mail address I had on my contact list but also because it didn't work in technical terms. I also think the system was designed that way on purpose, so that you would get so frustrated and would go for the premium plan...

I am a quick quitter of Twitter. I see it's value, but I am not connected on a mobile device. For me to log on just to keep up while I'm on my computer, it's not worth it- too time consuming. I wonder if the mobile device capability is a key factor that's being overlooked in the research?

BTW- I just read this same article at http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=136318

i hate even the idea of twitter...of course, until i have my own tweet for the show :) which i will view as another marketing approch...

but, really people following others .....it is too time consuming, and coutner productive to actually having a life

the only people i think who will remain users are HS kids who are interested in telling everyone everything they do all the time...and some families who are in each other's pockets

high school kids don't use Twitter

Great write up David. We appreciate it!

Good points...think most users will stay inside Facebook's walls with "early adopters" venturing outside to test the new api's...

His points on the centrality of mobile and casual gaming are good, as his idea that they need to rebuild their tech platform from underneath. Buying or building their own search, however, would be foolish. And he recognizes rightly where Facebook is killing it: "The value of a global rolodex of everyone on the planet is incalculable at this point... Read More ." It's true though that MySpace still has a very powerful brand and there's no reason it can't be resuscitated. BTW it doesn't have to be an either/or with Facebook. There's plenty of room for both.

Without hesitation, facebook. It's the only place of the two where you can see all the comments. That said, I do tihnk twitter is better for starting a conversation - people go to twitter with the intent to communicate. On facebook, there are a fair percentage of 'browsers'.

I am probably in the minority, but I dont like Twitter at all..
I personally believe that despite moving into more technological advanced wired socities, somehow this constant news barrage (not just FB and social networking, but also emails, and fwds etc) the pendulm will swing back and we will start devoting time that is gadget free....

probably, given that for many, Facebook (and free content generation) has all but replaced the corporation as a form of vocation.

interesting posted about how vitamin water is essentially using their facebook page as their Webpage and using it as call to action in tv commercials http://racetalkblog.com/2009/03/23/vitaminwater-skip-passes-website-calls-ncaa-hoops-viewers-to-its-facebook-page-in-tv-spots/

when something that substantial is produced I've got to digest it--might as well share with you all once I have, right? FB doesn't make it to the cover of major magazines that often. That was probably one of the 4 or 5 most thoughtful articles ever written about fb.