The Facebook Face-off: Faculty, Staff, and Rollins Very Own Orwellian Tyranny
A response to the on campus fallout regarding The Facebook as a "Big Brother."
Max Remer
Issue date: 9/30/05 Section: Opinions
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The other side of this argument has a strong case as well. Although Residential Life still seems somewhat overzealous, they are doing it for good reason. Rollins has a reputation as a party school. We are looked at as an institution of rich kids at a country club and not academics at a liberal arts college. This reputation is trying to be changed by the current staff. Thus, a crackdown on policies is enviable.
Students who break policies need to be punished; there is no way around this. Thus, Residential Life is simply doing its job in finding students who publicly disobey policy. The way in which Residential Life is doing this is through online anonymous reports placed through their website. Thus, someone is snitching on students, finding their pictures and turning them in.
I applaud this school for trying to change a negative reputation. However, I do not applaud snooping on students. Yet, students with pictures of themselves breaking policy are just as much at fault.
If you are going to break a law and/or a policy why publicly display yourself doing it? That is simply not a smart move. I beg the student body to take some responsibility and accountability for your own actions.
I would like to state that I am quite sympathetic to individuals who are simply in other people pictures. It is completely unjust to punish students who gave no consent for their pictures to be on websites. Although what the college might be doing is not desirable, it is what might be happening. When signing up for Facebook you represent Rollins College, as it is tagged to your login name and your page. Thus, the school has some right to monitor how its name is used.
I also call out to the college to think carefully about which roads it chooses to pursue. Although a picture is "worth a thousand words", it is not proof that a cup holds anything alcoholic.
The college needs to be very careful not to start an "us vs. them" mentality with the students. It also needs to stop jumping on students who turn up in pictures on internet websites doing crazy things. Students should only get in trouble when caught by an RA, CA or member of Residential Life.
I am in no way condoning breaking policy and getting away with it, rather I am fighting for a fair system relaying on eyewitness testimony rather then internet hearsay. Hopefully Residential Life will reexamine its policies, notices and ethical flaw with its current activities. Until that happens, students of Rollins: be warned, your privacy is not as safe as it once was.
Students who break policies need to be punished; there is no way around this. Thus, Residential Life is simply doing its job in finding students who publicly disobey policy. The way in which Residential Life is doing this is through online anonymous reports placed through their website. Thus, someone is snitching on students, finding their pictures and turning them in.
I applaud this school for trying to change a negative reputation. However, I do not applaud snooping on students. Yet, students with pictures of themselves breaking policy are just as much at fault.
If you are going to break a law and/or a policy why publicly display yourself doing it? That is simply not a smart move. I beg the student body to take some responsibility and accountability for your own actions.
I would like to state that I am quite sympathetic to individuals who are simply in other people pictures. It is completely unjust to punish students who gave no consent for their pictures to be on websites. Although what the college might be doing is not desirable, it is what might be happening. When signing up for Facebook you represent Rollins College, as it is tagged to your login name and your page. Thus, the school has some right to monitor how its name is used.
I also call out to the college to think carefully about which roads it chooses to pursue. Although a picture is "worth a thousand words", it is not proof that a cup holds anything alcoholic.
The college needs to be very careful not to start an "us vs. them" mentality with the students. It also needs to stop jumping on students who turn up in pictures on internet websites doing crazy things. Students should only get in trouble when caught by an RA, CA or member of Residential Life.
I am in no way condoning breaking policy and getting away with it, rather I am fighting for a fair system relaying on eyewitness testimony rather then internet hearsay. Hopefully Residential Life will reexamine its policies, notices and ethical flaw with its current activities. Until that happens, students of Rollins: be warned, your privacy is not as safe as it once was.