Peek-a-Boo!

It wasn’t so very long ago that I was talking to people like Chris Brogan and Aliza Sherman about transparency on the net, and their reasoning behind providing lots of very identifiable information to a wide and unknown public. My background is one of psuedonyms and hiding out for a false sense of security. I will not bother to tell you what my early internet names might be, but I will also not delude myself into believing that you couldn’t find out very easily if you want to. As you can see, I have made a slow progression from totally hiding to today, where I just put my real name out there and let the chips fall where they may.

These conversations are surfacing in my mind again today as I read this article from Jon Swift regarding how his Facebook account got deleted. Jon is calling Facebook’s actions a declaration of war on the blogosphere. To that I say, speak for yourself Jon. The blogosphere as a whole does not agree with you. In fact, this blogger thinks you’ve gone just a wee bit over the top.

Now I don’t know Jon, and I don’t usually read his blog. These are not fighting words, I promise. I’m just saying I think he has this one all wrong. And I’m not afraid to put my real name behind my reasons why.

Peek-a-Boo, I still see you

First is the fact that pseudonyms are a false security measure. No matter how much you’d like to believe that your private self is truly private if only you do this right, it simply isn’t. In this age of information sharing, I promise you there is not a way to draw a line between who you pretend to be and who you really are. The rule of thumb for the internet is that it’s a public space. Don’t do anything here that you would not want a random google search to find and link with you. If you’re afraid that your blog will ruin your chances of future employment, then chances are you shouldn’t be saying whatever you’re saying there. You cannot cower behind a monitor and pretend to be someone you’re not with no repercussions. Behave responsibly, and this shouldn’t be an issue.

Power Outage?

An even bigger reason not to hide is that there is so little to be gained that way. Even if no one ever invests the effort in finding your true identity and you remain safely masked, what do you gain that way? Making yourself heard is very powerful. But what good is it really if it then can’t be used to connect you to communities and people and opportunities. What kind of power do you really have if all you ever do is hide in an office or a living room somewhere and fire off nameless missives into the void? Isn’t the real power in connecting and opening doors for yourself and others? Doesn’t that require more of a presence than a fake name? What is the goal and the power of hiding behind your own words?

Am I afraid sometimes of what it means to be so open about my identity? Yes, yes I am. And anyone who has ever discussed this with me can tell you that is true. As a woman, I am taught that what I am doing here is wrong and dangerous. And yet, all it has ever brought me is good. New friends, new ideas, new opportunities, new ways to express myself. All of these were opened up not just because I say things on the internet, but because I put my face, my name, and myself behind every word of it. People can connect with me because I am the real deal. I am all in. I am exactly as advertised. And that level of reality affords me many more opportunities than my pseudonym ever did.

If you can’t play by the rules…

But off my soapbox and back to our friend Jon. Facebook deleted his account because Jon Swift is not his real name. How did they find out? Who knows. They didn’t ask him to verify, they never said a word. His account disappeared without fanfare. And while I may not agree with the tactics, the reasoning is rather indisputable. When you sign up with Facebook, you agree to a TOS which clearly states you are required to use your real name. If you are found to not be following that rule, your account may be deleted. He chose to violate the TOS and they chose to stand behind it. It’s not a declaration of war Jon. You just got caught not playing by the rules.

Update: Jon Swift’s Facebook account has been restored. While I understand Jon is not nefariously using the service or attempting to misrepresent another person, I still feel that this was a weak decision on Facebook’s part brought about by what amounts to peer pressure. If anything, this is the only part of the entire fiasco that makes me think less of Facebook in any way,