The scene above is possibly one of sheer terror and embarrassment. At least it is if you’re on Facebook and these are your parents. An EU funded study has found that older teens and others are fleeing the social media juggernaut thanks to the embarrassing presence of family. Namely mom and dad. From RT:
“Where once parents worried about their children joining Facebook, the children now say it is their family that insists they stay there to post about their lives. Parents have worked out how to use the site and see it as a way for the family to remain connected. In response, the young are moving on to cooler things,”
Those cooler things include Twitter and Snapchat, places parents have yet to invade with their loving comments, unflattering family photos, and status updates that reveal a long dormant bigoted past. Half of my family went full bore into Phil Robertson territory over the holidays and now I officially only use Facebook for business under an assumed name. Never mind the stalkers and Mexican cartels roaming around, I can’t have my family in my business.
“What appears to be the most seminal moment in a young person’s decision to leave Facebook was surely that dreaded day your mum sends you a friend request. You just can’t be young and free if you know your parents can access your every indiscretion,” Miller explained, adding that “Facebook is simply not cool anymore.” (via)
I’d just like to make a side note here that this a Russia Today story and an EU study that have utilized the word “cool” more than once in an official capacity. Just let that soak in before it returns to economic disaster and distrust of the government in five seconds.
As for the actual findings, I think there is plenty of merit to the conclusion. I’m older now, but I started to stray around the age noted in the story and during the initial phases of the family invasion. Ever since it has just been a place where I kept in touch with some college friends and ignored everyone’s app requests. A dormant beast I don’t even have on my phone anymore.
And the worst part is that Facebook is probably more technologically advanced now than it ever was during the height of it’s use. It is still a titan of social media that has borrowed and acquired newer tech to stay relevant, but it can’t seem to find a solution to the parent question. That is unless you’re ready to block your family and create a new existence online. Sometimes incognito is the best way to go on the internet, unless you’re using Google Plus. The best way to go with that is back the way you came.
(Lead image via gettyimages)