The rise of internet blogging has seen the broadcasting of communication taken into the hands of the masses. The website Twitter is now a hotspot for virtual self-expression. But what has caused this demand for the articulation of one’s inner thoughts on a global platform? It appears that in a society that places increasing emphasis on egalitarianism, everyone believes they have the right to be heard. Not just by one’s friends and perers but by the world at large. The internet provides a platform for amateurs to acquire the exposure usually reserved for those who have done something to deserve it.
However, in this age of reality television and multiple mediums for the creation of celebrity, merit is no longer necessary to draw attention. Yet the vacuous nature of fame does not deter people from equating it with status. Perhaps people go as far to believe that their thoughts are not valuable unless they are valued by a wide audience, a notion that can only create anxiety and insecurity in those who believe it. An internet blogger can measure the precise value of his or her opinions in numerical terms through the amount of hits their blog receives. The social networking site Facebook contributes to this culture of superficial identity, through its open publication of each member’s amount of friends; one’s personal worth is reduced to a number.
Facebook is another internet resource that offers the opportunity for people to validate their experiences by making them known to a wider audience than is usually accessible, in this case through status updates. Are these tools for self-expression positive democratic resources that encourage creativity and increased literacy? Or are they in fact another example of modern culture’s proliferation of information, devaluing the literature available to people and ultimately amounting to little more than white noise? What’s so bad about anonymity anyway? Celebrity has become vulgar. Perhaps there should be a return to the inner meditation promoted by writers such as Wordsworth and Austen. It might be healthier for people to take themselves away from their computers and instead embark upon solitary walks and reflective contact with nature, as promoted by these writers. Instead people are opting for the ego enhancing option of internet exposure.