Facebook trying to connect to us without a computer...

So the above video is an ad for Facebook. Not that Facebook needs to be advertised since most people have heard of the social networking site already. There are those people who are on Facebook and there are those who aren't. And so far I think each individual in those two camps are probably fine with their 'status' as a user or non-user.

So who is this advert for?! Shareholders? Is it trying to raise the profile of the company so more people will invest in it? Or is it trying to improve the reputation of Facebook? It is as if the above advert is saying: See! Facebook is not a website where people spy on their friends, it is not a place where your privacy is routinely violated or where minor acquaintances project their deeply private inner-most thoughts on to your news feed. Nope, Facebook is like a chair. A bridge. It brings us together. Reminds us we are not alone in the universe. 

Sorry if I sound too sarcastic or hypocritical. I like Facebook. I have a profile on Facebook. I surf Facebook several times a week. I connect with friends and family who live on the other side of the world through Facebook. I post jokes and funny messages and sometimes I even express my frustration with, say, public transport or the IT system at work. BUT...I am aware of what it is. It is not real life. Seeing my friends' profile on Facebook is no substitute for seeing them in the flesh. Or even receiving a letter from them in the post.

My Facebook feed is mostly made up of news from different arts organisations, Time Out London updates and funny photos posted by George Takei (famous as being Sulu from Star Trek and more recently as a gay rights campaigner in California). I use Facebook as a way to find out what to do in London on the weekend or to email my friends who constantly lose their phones.

So when I see a video like this, I think...well...there are so many other ways to connect. Everyone in this advert is connecting without the use of Facebook and they all seem to be having a great time doing it (except for the one crying woman standing in her kitchen!?). Why use Facebook if you do have a spare chair for a friend to sit down on? Or a bridge to climb over, or a sunset to look at, or a plane to fly in? This ad just serves to emphasise how much more exciting real life is than anything that you can find on a computer.

Now on that note, stop reading this blog! And go for a walk outside!