Our Contribution to the Internet

As more and more people are becoming comfortable with the internet, it is now the first place to seek information. Whether you are looking up a term on wikipedia or reading what john smith has to say about a topic, more than likely, you are reading "User Generated Content" or UGC. UGC is anything published by an individual on the internet. As Lisa Barone, in User Generated Content & Search, pointed out, UGC comes in many different forms, such as blogs, reviews, forums, media sharing, webpages, profiles, and news comments.

There are two obvious sides to this topic. On one hand, you have information from users just like you. More often then not, they are looking for similar services and quality in products. These other users will help you in your search for whatever you are looking for.

On the other hand, you don't know these people. There is this sense of trust that you instill in their information. I must say, we seem to trust other users more and more as we rely on these reviews and forums. Since they have become a first source for many, we sometimes forget or choose to forget that we don't know these people.

I admit, I'm one of those people who rely on UGC. Growing up using computers and internet, I never sought information from alternative means. It's important to be conscience and aware of what you're reading on the internet. Blogs are usually opinions as well as reviews. Remember, don't believe everything you hear, especially when you don't know the person who said it.

Who Needs a T.V. Anymore?

For starters, although I decided to go to American University, in Washington, DC, I am not into politics. Many people are surprised to hear that, which I understand. I never followed politics in high school and even here, I just pay my attention to the primary's. I came to AU for reasons other than its location, but that's another story.

The discussion this week is about how politics is taking over the internet. I am not surprised to see this happen. I view politics as a business, which has a budget and a workforce. They have strategies and game plans in which to campaign their candidates. Using the internet is simply another tool in which to do so. They are finding innovative ways to get their names out to the public and to display their views. From the Pickled Politics article, Sunny writes, "The supporters understand politicians need them to sustain their campaign, so they donate money and volunteer their services after watching targeted messages."

The other issue addresses the fact that people, usually young adults, are using the internet to spread a message and create a plan of action. In ABC's, "Person of the Week: Ana Slavin and Nick Anderson", Charles Gibson talks about how these two teenagers raised money for Darfur through web 'friends'. This is very similar to politicians trying to gain an edge in today's world. More and more people are connecting to the internet, and teenagers realize that. I am in fact very proud of what they did and commend their actions. It just goes to show how powerful the internet can be.

Accept My Invitation...Now Hire Me

As a senior in in college, I am currently looking for a job post graduation. I have taken the usual approaches, such as checking in with the career center on campus, attending job fairs, and asking friends if there are an available positions where they are now. The newest method is over the internet on Linkedin. You create a profile fill it with all of your information, such as past experience, age, expertise, and your contacts. For example, in the article, Workforce Management "Using Social Networking to Fill the Talent Acquisition Pipeline " "Crawford Hentz recently sourced six of the seven finalist candidates for a senior-level position from LinkedIn."

I recently signed up for Linkedin and initially wasn't impressed. I was expecting something like facebook, whereas this is much different. It serves a different purpose and attracts a different audience. I now believe that it benefits both parties, the employer and potential employee. The employer gets another avenue to research its candidates and the potential employee further gets his/her name out to the public. It's simply another resource for everyone to share and I urge someone to show me the downside to this. I feel the advantages outweigh the negatives by a landslide.