I am really encouraged and excited about the tech-direction of Campus Crusade for Christ in the next few years.
I just got out of a Social Networking seminar that (though sparsely attended) was headed in very good directions helping our staff to think about blogging, Twitter and Facebook and how they can be used to bring more students into the conversation on campus about Jesus.
There were older staff who were interested in starting blogs and asking great questions. There were staff who were even asking for what hosting service they should check into. These are huge steps. I underestimated us significantly.
There were also at least 25 staff who probably just signed up for Twitter.
The largest, and most encouraging thing is the Connect Deck. There are 5 of us at each main session who are monitoring the Social Media streams (Twitter, Facebook Chat, SMS) and pulling things out of it to put into the conference itself. It’s been great to be seen as some sort of authority on it – and I think I may be within our organization. I have felt behind the larger curve, but I am ahead here.
How do you think we could be using these technologies better?
After a particularly disgusting display last night where I “tweeted” 5 times in reference to Late Night with Conan O’Brien and then reading a particularly well thought-out post from eminent pastor, thinker & speaker John Piper on why he has decided to use Twitter and how he is planning on using it, I have found it necessary to re-think how I make use of and interact with social-media.
As of today I own, run or use regularly:
- 3 Twitter accounts.
- 8 blogs/mini-blogs/”best of” feeds
- 1 Friend Feed account
- 2 Facebook accounts (1 account and 1 page)
- 1 active Google Latitude account
- GChat
- AIM
- Facebook Chat
Beyond this, I have many of these integrated. My personal Twitter & Facebook accounts are updated when I post to 4 of the blogs (you probably got here from the link on one of them). I often use my GChat, AIM and Facebook Chat accounts through one program that connects to all of them simultaneously. Also, my Google Latitude account updates my GChat status automatically. My Twitter account automatically updates my Facebook status (I tried to make this work with GChat, but failed), my blogs also automatically post into my Facebook account as notes. All of these are integrated into my Friend Feed account and I have used Yahoo Pipes to integrate all of them in to one master feed.
In addition to all of this, I have increasingly tried to make it easy to get to any of these pages by creating redirects.
In the past weeks, I’ve also found myself more defensive towards people who mock those of us who are more connected using these “tools,” which is usually a sign for me that I am taking myself or these interactions far far too seriously or imparting too much importance to them on the whole. After reading the well thought out statements that Piper wrote, I have decided that I definitely need to rethink what I’m doing here. Do I need to pull the integration plugs? Do I need to close accounts? Do I just need to pull the plug altogether?
What are you doing to keep yourself connected, but also focused on reality and real lives? What limits have you put in place to keep social networking from becoming an idol?
Okay. I need to post in response to the responses on my post (they’re mostly on Facebook).
I should have made it clear that my beef was mostly with people who are Christians undercutting and slandering someone else who is also. The whole socialism is a peve of mine, but not that big of a deal. I apologise if anyone feels offended by how I presented the comments about socialism, but I will not be apologising about the ones about slandering a brother in Christ. Take it as rebuke or whatever you want to call it.
To summarize: dis your brother and I’ll get pissed, but dis politics all you want I’ll just debate it with you.
