theshiftingstacks

I came accross Dana Boyd's talk on Jessamyn West's blog, about social networking sites.  Boyd goes into detail about the divisions recreated in the Myspace/Facebook divide, among other social networking sites.  In short, social networking sites on "the internet mirrors and magnifies pre-existing dynamics" in society. 

For librarians who try to connect ever closer to their users, online presence means more than just usability or accessibility.  As a part of society, librarians make decisions on services based on those same social influences as our users.  Depending on our own social spheres, librarians may naturally choose Facebook over Myspace, and as Boyd points out, alienate a segment of our user base.

Frankly, if libraries want to connect with users on the web they should ask what services patrons prefer.  As a social science, libraries should provide data driven services for those issues presented by Boyd.  Survey instruments could indicate where librarians should place their online efforts and mitigate format snobbery.  Though the process of discovering patrons' online habits may be more complicated, a survey is a good start. 

I highly recommend Boyd's presentation on the ethnographic data and insights she collected on social networking sites.

boyd, danah. 2009. "The Not-So-Hidden Politics of Class Online." Personal Democracy Forum, New York, June 30. <http://www.danah.org/papers/talks/PDF2009.html>