Is Facebook on the Way to Becoming the Next MySpace?

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm by Mark D. Roberts

Is Facebook on the Way to Becoming the Next MySpace? 2015-03-13T15:31:26-05:00 Mark D. Roberts

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Remember MySpace? It was all the rage just a few years ago. In 2006 it became the most visited website in the U.S. You just had to have a MySpace, especially if you were under 25.

But then something happened. Facebook happened. It skyrocketed to the top of the social media ladder, while MySpace plummeted, now down to 186th place in the online world.

So has Facebook secured its place on the top of the ladder? Not necessarily, says journalist Michael Wolff, writing in USA Today. According to Wolff, Facebook is on the road to becoming the next MySpace. He explains:

Not only is Facebook challenged by its inability to grow advertising revenue fast enough — the primary culprit in its 50% share-price plunge — but now it’s facing a carve-up of the social experience.

This is not just by the high-fliers in its space, Twitter and Linkedin — themselves in danger of fragmentation — but by an ever-growing assortment of specialty players.

This is happening by demographics: Path, for instance, targets an upscale, executive, familyish, yuppified niche. It’s happening by interest: ArtStack focuses on art and taste as the common thread. There’s gender: Luluvise and SkinnyScoop. There’s format: Pinterest. There’s video and audio: Viddy and Just Sayin’.

If you’re not familiar with these alternative social networking sites, as I was not before reading Wolff’s article, I refer you to his helpful explanation. But here’s something worth thinking about . . . and quoting:

Facebook is cookie-cutter-ish. Facebook is boring. Facebook verges on the totally square. It’s something to rise above — to aspire out of. Facebook is … MySpace.

Wolff concludes:

Facebook has built a platform that allows other people to start more intimate, personalized, targeted networks. But that facilitation isn’t Facebook’s business, at least, it’s not the one they envisioned. . . .

Facebook’s flaw is that it has always thought of itself as a data company. By facilitating a set of orderly interactions, it would garner exclusive information that would give it valuable insight into people’s behavior. It would eventually know so much about you that it would be able to tell you, with ever-increasing certainty, who should be your friends.

Perhaps never has there been a lamer misunderstanding of social interaction. Or maybe it’s the classic nerd misunderstanding: that you can learn social ease and nuance.

I’m mostly a casual observer of social media phenomena. And I’m surely no accurate forecaster of the future of social media. But, given what we’ve seen in the past, with MySpace and other platforms for digital interaction, it does seem that the spot at the top of the ladder is precarious. Moreover, it does seem likely that people will begin to look for more intimate and familiar ways to interact online. Even folks who love a big city live in small neighborhoods they call home.

Technology and Culture

Previous Post

October 7, 2012

Would You Pass a Kidney Test? Inspiration from the High Calling

Next Post

October 16, 2012 The Interweaving of Digital Life with Embodied Life - Politics on Facebook

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Advent Advent Calendar Alissa Wilkinson Archeology Art and Faith Ash Wednesday Bible Books Business Business and Faith Christian Year (Liturgical or Church Year) Christmas Christmas according to Dickens Christmas, Culture, and Christ Christmas: Keeping Christmas Well Church and Culture Church and Ministry Church and Technology Church Life Church: What is a Church? Cities Code of Ethics for Pastors Contentment Creativity Cultural Commentary Culture Daily Reflections Dallas Willard Deliberating on Digital Dignity Easter Education Ephesus and the New Testament Ethics Eugene Peterson Evangelical Existential Questions Faith Faith and Work Family Food Friendship Fun Good Reads Gospel Centered Christianity Grace Handel's Messiah Harvard University Health High Calling History Holidays Holy Spirit Holy Week Hospitality How Does God Guide Us? Hunger Games Insights for Leaders - De Pree Center Inspiration from the High Calling Jesus Jesus: Following Him as a Disciple Jesus: Seven Last Words Jesus: Was Jesus Married? Jesus: What Was His Message? Jesus: Why Did He Have to Die? Laity Lodge Leadership Leadership Conversation Lent Les Miserables Life for Leaders Linda's Advent Doodles Linda's Lenten Doodles Living Well Loving Neighbors Max De Pree Center for Leadership Mental Health Mission of God and Missional Church Money Moral Dilemmas Mormonism Movies Nature New York City Pastors and Churches Pentecost Photos to Share Poetry Police Blotter Politics Prayer Preachers Portal Preaching Presbyterian Church Quotations Reading the Times Recommendations Reflecting on Technology Religion and Culture Ruminations Sabbath Science Seven Last Words Sexual Harassment Social Media Something to Think About Spiritual Warfare Sports Stations of the Cross Stephen Hawking: Heaven and Faith Stories Technology and Culture Technology and Education Technology and Mental Health Technology Bits Texas Thanksgiving The High Calling Thin Places Uncategorized Vocation Women Words Work Worship

Select a Month November 2018 October 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 March 2017 February 2017 December 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 April 2015 March 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 November 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What British monarch is also Supreme Governor of the Church of England?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Archbishop of Canterbury The King/Queen of England Pope Prime Minister