I just checked my Facebook email box and noticed that I had four identical emails from "Blog World Expo" that looked and felt quite promotional in nature. Turns out it was a rather innocent mistake, but it still freaked me out a bit. Part of what's drawn me to Facebook (as with so many others, I presume) is my newfound power to control, filter, and "permission" content. And by doing so, my ESR (email satisfaction rate...a term I've just invented...see the rare blank on Google) has gone up dramatically. Now I fear I'm about to enter than all-too-familiar "post-innocence" phase where my over-zealousness (ego-driven?) in approving friends, joining groups, or checking off this-or-that cool widget is about to backfire.
Ripples of Irony: There's some irony here. Only a few weeks ago I wrote an article
entitled the Two Faces of Facebook in which I quoted Robert Scoble saying, with both pride and uber-enthusiasm, that "Facebook has decided to protect me from spam." Technically he's right, as "we" control the levers, but I suppose we may need to scour, sanitize, and double-check our lists here and there, especially our friends lists...and the friends of our purported friends. (Recall my first rumination Meaningful Relationships with Social Networks) The second irony here (and again, all innocent...so don't shoot this messenger) is the email blast triggering this blog came from the "Blog World Expo" (which sounds like an awesome event, I must say). I almost wish it came from Sanford Wallace or Herbal Remedies, Inc. It's harder to get huffy and puffy when the source of your painpoint is the very folks who have led and nurtured this exciting new "join the conversation" culture. Then again, maybe this is a needed irony. Happy Labor Day to all!
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