Self Audit

Just about everyone has an online presence. From your grandma to your little cousin who seems a little too young to own a phone, but how much of an online presence do they have? How much of an online presence do you have? I pondered this question about my online presence and I came up with an answer rather quickly/

I have little to no online presence.

How does it have little to no presence in the modern era? Well the answer to that is also simple. I just made my social media rather recently, and I don't like posting so my presence is very small, and people probably don't find what I post to be rather interesting.

From my social media one can figure out I'm an African American, go to High Point University, and maybe that I like taking pictures. There isn't much else anyone can figure out. When I google myself I don't pop up but people who share my name do, and there is a surprising amount of people who's name is Randall Belcher out there.

Some people say that social media can make people feel depressed, lonely, or feel isolated. Well yes it probably does, but  I don't feel that way. Since I look at social media as the "best parts" of peoples lives I don't feel like I'm missing out when people post where they are going, what they're doing, or who they are hanging out with. If one believes that people's post are actually what they are doing everyday then it makes sense why they would feel depressed or lonely because if they see everyone posting the best parts of their lives and believe that's them everyday they can feel like their life kinda sucks in comparison.

I should probably try to increase my presence on social media, use my platforms as a way to advertise myself. That way when employers do look for me they find me easily and like what they see.

Sources

Charles, S., & M.d. (2019, March 15). Social media linked to rise in mental health disorders in teens, survey finds. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/health/mental-health/social-media-linked-rise-mental-health-disorders-teens-survey-finds-n982526 

Market Place of Ideas

Picture from condenastore

Freedom of speech is important for many different reasons. For me the most important reason is that freedom of speech allows for a marketplace of ideas, but what is a marketplace of ideas and why is that important?

To put it simply a marketplace of ideas is a place where "belief that the test of the truth or acceptance of ideas depends on their competition with one another and not on the opinion of a censor, whether one provided by the government or by some other authority." This allows for many differing ideologies to grow and flourish. It creates a sort of competition of ideas as well, which idea is the better one, and in theory the better idea will win.

For example let's take the field of science. Since America allows for a marketplace of ideas it allows for science to advance because person A does an experiment, states their results and publishes the experiment and their conclusion. Other scientists can then also do said experiment and say if their results differ and refute person A's conclusion. Another example is how one can refute a theory or build upon a theory.

The reason why I believe this is essential for freedom of speech is because one cannot have speech without being able to put their ideas out there, and one cannot grow without their ideas being proven right/wrong. For example if a child states something that is incorrect, they are putting their idea into the marketplace of ideas. However then the parent must, or at least hopefully will, correct the child by telling them their idea. The child gains knowledge from this marketplace. This example is not only limited to children. Anyone can learn from a marketplace of ideas.

The entertainment business also benefits from this marketplace of ideas. Creatives are able to put their ideas out there and if people like them they can profit from said ideas. People can also come together in order to create something in which they wouldn't have been able to unless they were able to freely express said ideas. For Example person A has an idea for a movie but doesn't know how to get started and can't look at their own work critically so they seek help from person B. Person B and person A work together and create a product that neither of them could have made on their own. This is the power of a marketplace of ideas.

Sources

Schultz, D., & Hudson, D. L. (n.d.). Marketplace of Ideas. Retrieved from https://www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/999/marketplace-of-ideas