It's sensitive-A few minutes on Tumblr or Facebook can attest to that; anything topical you say or do will be used against you. Any kind of opinionated tweet/status/vlog or post that expresses an unpopular view will be met with extensive debate and hate.
It's a trolling device-Rick Rolls owes the reboot of his career to internet trolling. This 80s hit was revived by Youtube in the early noughties and is still used to troll people. The internet is never going to give you up, Rick.
You can be anyone-This can be a great thing but unfortunately, as amply demonstrated on the hit TV show Catfish, you can take on fake personas and manipulate people's feelings or fabricate your own achievements. Most things read on the internet should be taken with a pinch of salt.
It can make anything famous-The strangest, most unexpected things can find fame on the internet, Mean Girls quotes for one. This has even resulted in a revival of Mean Girls merchandise with ever popular quotes like 'you go Glen Coco' or 'on Wednesdays, we wear Pink.' Other famous causes include Nicholas Cage memes, Kermit the Frog, which is used mostly for satire or indirect shaming, but of course, that's none of my business..
It's obsessive-Much like a trolling antic, once the internet latches onto something that it likes, it will be plastered everywhere. Whatever it is, for that period of obsession, it will circulate everywhere. Like the Harlem Shake which even saw major A list celebrities getting involved. Other notable obsessions include the Gangnam Style, or the chaos of the dress which divided the internet (and families and friends) into two camps of white or blue. (I saw blue!)
its inexhaustible-no one can muster the internet, The only thing worse than being a 40-something/middle aged, technology illiterate person who can't quite grasp the concept of social media and other features of the internet, is being a 20-something who can't. And we're actually expected to. One has to remember to like, share, subscribe, retweet, favourite, double tap, follow and all that jazz. By the time you've grasped these concepts, there's a newer one to be learned. It's ever-growing.
It has a short attention span-viral videos all have one thing in common, they're short and sweet, because the internet has no time for plot development, if it doesn't warrant a chuckle within the first one minute, no one is going to hang around for the rest. Same rules apply to video buffering. We just don't have the time to wait for videos to buffer.
It's addictive- one does not simply watch one episode of anything on Netflix. Or Youtube. Procrastination and mindless internet browsing are synonymous with each other.
It can be dangerous- While the internet can be a great source of information, productivity and entertainment, it also has a dark side. Because of its anonymity and accessibility, it can fall into the wrong hands, if not careful.
But ultimately, it's a wonderful storehouse of connections and universality. In a matter of seconds, we can be connected to the other side of the world. The internet has bridged distances, barriers and time, unlike anything before it. And for that, let's be grateful.
Share This Article
