Before you post that on Facebook…

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My friend Jeremy Stover (who has been featured here in the past) shared a few insights regarding protocol for posting on Facebook, much of which is built upon a foundation of insightful restraint. He said I could share them here.

When possessed of the inevitable urge to post about a controversial, hot button issue, why not take a brief moment to consider the exact reasoning behind your post? What are you ultimately hoping to gain by clicking on the blue rectangle?

It is rarely a bad idea to go ahead and post if the answer resembles any of the following:

  1. I want to encourage reasonable and hopefully intelligent conversation amongst my family and friends.
  2. I have stumbled upon information or insight that I genuinely find to be helpful and/or interesting, and I feel others could possibly benefit from taking a look at it as well.
  3. I’m struggling to understand this issue and watching/reading the news isn’t helping.

You may want to think twice about posting if it’s more like one of these:

  1. I’m excited for people to like my opinion.
  2. I’m excited for people to make angry comments about my opinion.
  3. This is the type of thing that people who belong to my political party of choice are expected to post.
  4. I have fingers and a Facebook account.

The dignity you save could be your own. Now do as I command!

 

Alex Steed

About Alex Steed

Alex Steed has written about and engaged in politics since he was an insufferable teenager. He has run for the Statehouse and produced a successful web series. He now runs a content firm called Knack Factory with two guys who are a lot more talented than himself.