It’s been interesting to
watch the evolution of Facebook and its demographic. It may have originally
been designed for the young and as a competitor for MySpace, but wherever it’s
really aiming, that’s not the target it hits now, at least as near as I can
tell. Facebook seems almost as likely to appeal to someone in danger of a broken hip
as it is to someone who actually is hip.
It appears to me, although I
admit I’m only truly aware of my own FB-Friends, most of whom are former students (now
adults and peers), plus colleagues and relatives, that FB is most popular among
adults, and not exactly young adults at that. I’m seeing fewer of the
embarrassing quotes or pictures that tend to be the hallmark of the immature. I
do see, and enjoy, travel pictures, kid and grandkid pictures, celebrations,
announcements, wry observations, etc.*
The young have moved on as
their elders have moved in (kind of the opposite of modern society, where the
young move (back) in, keeping their elders from moving on, but that’s a column
for another day, and not a problem I personally have). They are more likely to
be found on SnapChat, Tumblr, Twitter or something even cooler (no doubt an
uncool expression, but MY target audience understands) I haven’t heard of yet.
(I’ll get caught up during softball season.)
To tell you the truth, I
like it this way. Facebook may have gotten grayer, but, for me at least, it’s
become more interesting and a way for a less than social being like myself to
stay connected with people I’m interested in but would have lost contact with,
barring a random encounter at a store or mall. Whether that’s a viable business
model or not, I don’t know (although it IS scary how accurately the
ads reflect my product searches), but I didn’t get in on the IPO anyway.
* FB is also the only way I can follow my former Mirowitz students and I’m
thankful for that, as well.
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