On Twitter you follow, on Facebook you become friends, but what happens when there is a split, when there is a falling out? Do you do as Steve Martin once said,

“I break with thee, I break with thee, and throw dog poop on their shoes!”

In the modern internet era that may mean “unfollowing” someone on Twitter and “unfriending“ them on Facebook, or combination of you’re connected in multiple areas. This may occur from a real world falling out, or just because of an oversaturation of meaningless of status updates or tweets you’re tired of seeing.

Which leads to an interesting question are the “rules” for dissolving an online “connection/friendship” different than dissolving them in the real world?

Some Facts

The Atlanta Journal and Constitution recently reported on a University of Colorado study done by Christopher Sibona and Steven Walczak, where they surveyed social media online participants and they has concluded that Facebook users are more inclined to unfriend someone online than in real life.

“One of the interesting things about unfriending is the most real-world friendships either blow-up or fade away,” said Sibona, “But on Facebook, users actively make the decision to unfriend, and people often don’t know why or what’s happened in the relationship.”

This is partial list what their study identified as some of the top reasons someone might be unfriended:

-Posting too frequently (hour by hour potty training updates get old quick)

-Posturing sensitive topics like politics, religion, or controversial issues (left of right may not sit right with all)

-Real life falling out (let’s be friends after a split doesn’t mean you can have a front row seat to my life now)

-Your Filter is way too broad (rude, crude, and lewd is just as unsettling online as it is around the dinner table)

 This new world has created an entirely new vocabulary that didn’t exist a few short years ago and a term like “unfriending” became the New Oxford Dictionary’s new word of the year for 2009.

Personally I think the sheer fact Facebook added a feature to block Farmville and Mafia wars from appearing in the news feed allowed for many an online “friendship” to remain intact…..whether that’s good or bad is still up for discussion. 

Have you felt tension in deciding who to “friend” on Facebook?

Have you unfriended any one on Facebook?

You have anything you would add to the list of reasons you might say sayonara to someone?

~Tom

trusting God period

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