Social Networks vs. General Blogs

As I posted comments this week on Facebook and online stories, I noticed a big difference between the types of conversations I became involved in.  There were distinct differences between my use of Facebook and other networks, from the content of topics to the type of language used.  

First, I commented on a story about the Occupy Wall Street protests.  I found myself using formal language; similar to the way I would try to write for an academic paper.  I think I felt less comfortable just being myself since I did not find myself particularly close to the topic.  I had to rely on the information I could gather from articles, and the type of jargon you hear in the news. I feel like the comment I made sort of became lost in the sea of comments on the topic, not being shot down, but not causing much revolution either.

The next conversation I commented on was about Amanda Knox being set free.  I stumbled upon a very heated debate, and tried to chime in with my own opinion. It was interesting to see how passionate people would become during these conversations.  I found it to be a good opportunity for people to talk about issues that they may not be able to discuss by other means.

The third story I commented on, which was on the lighter side, was about the Red Hot Chili Peppers and their return to the road.  This conversation was not as heated as the previous two, but it was still cool to be able to talk about a general topic with a group of people that have similar interests.  You can hear different perspectives about topics that you didn’t even realize had so many sides.

On Facebook, I posted two comments to friends, and one to a former teacher.  My language in all of these comments was informal and perhaps more indicative of my personality.  As I commented, I realized that everything I talk about or read about on Facebook is more about personal relationships and identities.  It’s not that what I talk about on Facebook is unimportant, but it is generally only topics that directly affect me in some way.

Blogging on news and entertainment is great because you can talk about general topics and it doesn’t even matter who you are talking with.  At least for me, Facebook is a place where the person you are talking to can at times can be more relevant than what you are talking about.  One is not better or worse than the other, it is just two different types of conversation. 

Personally, I find myself using Facebook much more than other communication sites.  I definitely want to become more involved though in general discussions about news and different topics of interest.  It allows you to get into conversations that you may not typically have on Facebook or anywhere else.