The Collective Network

The glamorous life of promoting a book and living on the west coast means you get to wake up at 4 a.m. to do radio interviews for morning shows…I'm feeling very sleepy right now. I think what's fascinating about the reaction to the Virginia Tech shootings on sites like Facebook is how a national tragedy of this scale really jolts people out of their personal networks into a collective network. It sounds hokey, but isn't this the promise of the internet? Offering people the opportunity to be global citizens and connect across school, city or country?

We all know that most young people on MySpace and Facebook use these sites to primarily socialize with people they know offline or who they have met "in real life" at some point. The shootings have changed that dynamic, at least for a moment, making some of these Facebook groups and memorials places for complete strangers to connect around this tragedy, to support each other, to debate gun control, remember the victims, etc. This phenomenon happens all the time around shared pop culture obsessions — strangers comment, debate and form communities around everything from celebrity gossip to favorite TV shows. And to a degree it happens on MySpace around music — fans coming together again. What's also interesting is the disgust I'm seeing with the media who have been posting on these sites looking for people to interview. I just spotted this note on one popular Facebook group created to remember Emily Hilscher, one of the shooting victims:

"**ATTENTION NEWS MEDIA**

NEWS MEDIA DO NOT have permission to use photographs, quotes, or any information from the site, AND you do not have permission to contact group members. At a future time permission may be granted, however seeing the certain examples of spamming of news media with myself and group members PLEASE DO NOT STEAL this information or spam members for information.

Continuous communication or harassment by the news media WILL NOT be tolerated. On behalf of myself and all group members expressly reject any offers for interviews, pictures, etc. and if group officers do decide to share, we will contact you personally.

The respect for those grieving is very much appreciated, we DO NOT want the memory for Emily Hilscher to be BUTCHERED more then it already has.

I WANT TO MAKE THIS VERY CLEAR.

This site is designed for the friends and family of Emily Hilscher to honor the life that was so brutishly ended on April 16th. It is a shame and greedy for these News agencies to grab information that they PERSONALLY have no affiliation with.

I understand that many, if not most of the agencies mean no harm in using the information. I do understand that this is a national tragedy.

Again, most people that have joined this group are NOT in any way, shape, or form ready to give information about Emily's life.

PLEASE LEAVE ALL MEMBERS ALONE.

Again, it's that grey area about what is "public" and what feels like an invasion of privacy even if it is public.

Here are two articles on how "Gen Y" deals with tragedy:

Gen Y shaped, not stopped, by tragedy (USA Today)
Gen Yers post grief online (Houston Chronicle) (I'm quoted in this one — not sure if I'm being super coherent though)

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