The web provides a space where the normal barriers to friendship — namely, the confusion about the appropriate way to start one — don’t apply. Online, you can choose to opt in — friend, follow, favorite — any person that peaks your interest, because of your pre-existing knowledge, again gleaned from the Internet, of their interests. The web doesn’t preclude people from making IRL (in real life) friends. It actually makes it easier.
The Internet Can Make Real Life Friendships Easier
by Jazmine Hughes
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/03/05/real-relationships-in-a-digital-world/the-internet-can-make-real-life-friendships-easier
Recently, at an IRL party — that is, a party that takes place “in real life,” as opposed to where I generally live, which is on the Internet — a guest asked a friend and me how we met.
“On…the Internet,” I responded bashfully, almost embarrassed.
I’m a — gulp — blogger for a living, so it makes sense that I spend an inordinate amount of time online, but it’s actually enriched my unplugged life: The Internet is where I’ve found all my friends.
It’s easy to dismiss friendships that originate online as superficial, with the broad assertion that no one is their “true” self online, but instead a distilled curation of snapshots, quips and restaurant check-ins, all rolled into one cohesive personal “brand.” But why can’t our social media presences serve as a primer to our real-life selves, a tangible way to say, “What you see is what you get?” There’s a person behind that hashtag.
Exactly one time, at a bookstore, I struck up an real-life conversation with someone because something about their appearance made me think we’d get along. We talked for a few minutes, found out we had a lot in common, and I came away feeling I’d made a new friend. And three hours later, I had proof: She sent me a Facebook friend request.
The web provides a space where the normal barriers to friendship — namely, the confusion about the appropriate way to start one — don’t apply. Online, you can choose to opt in — friend, follow, favorite — any person that peaks your interest, because of your pre-existing knowledge, again gleaned from the Internet, of their interests. The web doesn’t preclude people from making IRL friends. It actually makes it easier.
Real Relationships in a Digital World?
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/03/05/real-relationships-in-a-digital-world