You and I belong to the digital generation and whether we like it or not, we leave digital footprints[1] wherever we go in cyberspace. When we use our emails, surf the net, update our Friendster or Facebook, and write posts and comments in weblogs, we leave permanent traces of our past and present that might affect our future.  

To help us understand how our digital footprints affect us, let’s use an Edward de Bono thinking tool that I often use in class with my students. It’s called PMI (Plus, Minus, Interesting)[2] and it’s a simple graphic organizer that can help us weigh the advantages and disadvantages of our digital footprints.

Here’s what the PMI Chart looks like:

Digital footprints can…

The Pluses:

1. Digital footprints can help us find long-lost relatives and friends - We all have our own stories of discovering long-lost relatives and friends in social networks. Being overseas, I regularly log-on to Facebook and Friendster to reconnect with my elementary, high school, college, and postgraduate friends. It’s one of the best cures for homesickness. 

Rico Mossesgeld of fool45.com shared his story of finding a long-lost branch of his great grandfather because of his weblog.

2. Digital footprints can help us have more friends - Aside from touching base with old friends, blogs and network sites can help you forge new friendships. You can do it online by adding new friends in your social networking sites or you can have online discussions with fellow-commenters in blogs. 

You can also meet your blog-friends by attending bloggers’ meetings. If only I were in the Philippines, I would’ve said yes to Ederic’s invitation to join the Bloggers’ Kapihan 3.0 during the 7^th anniversary of People Power 2. Another “nakaka-inggit” bloggers’ event was the Trinoma Bloggers’ Food Tour last January which JM Tuazon of jmtuazon.tinig.com described as a “pig-out.” And of course, there’s the much-awaited and highly-anticipated Philippine Blog Awards which promises to be a spectacular gathering of Pinoy bloggers.

A word of caution - Reyna Elena warned us about shady characters who might take advantage of the new-found friendships and they might try to borrow money from you. Oh my! 

3. Digital footprints can fulfill the dreams of aspiring writers - When it comes to writing, the age-old adage Practice makes perfect certainly holds true. I’m sure that there are many bloggers like me who are fulfilling their childhood dreams of becoming a writer through their weblogs. And by God’s grace, I hope we’re getting better at our craft.

The Bayanihan Blog Network’s Write Life Guide, edited by Connie Luayon, offers plenty of start-up opportunities for bloggers and aspiring writers who want to turn pro. As the Milo advertisement said, “Great things start from small beginnings.”

4. Digital footprints can provide some income - When it comes to income from blogs, let’s talk numbers. James Ryan Jonas of pinoymoneytalk.com posted his P204,311.30 check from his AdSense earnings in September 2007. Ambo of PinoyAmbisosyo.com was proud that he reached the $100 Adsense-mark last Feb 18, 2008. Aside from AdSense, Marhgil of macuha.com listed other earning opportunities that blog owners can venture into.

But before you dream of becoming a wealthy blogger, check out if you have what it takes to be a successful one. Read Pinoyblogero Karlo Lucidine’s 12 Job Requirements in Blogging. Are you cut out to be a blogger?

5. Digital footprints can help promote or market just about anything - Andrew de la Serna of alleba.com believes in the power of online marketing for Filipino companies.  

6. Digital footprints can support advocacy campaigns - online polls, blogswarms, blogyanihans, issues, etc. - Time and time again, Filipino netizens have shown that cyber advocacy campaigns influence the real world. The online pen is truly mightier than the sword, whether it’s for Malu Fernandez’s resignation, Marco Torres‘ torchbearer aspirations, Desperate Housewives‘ discrimination, POEA’s MC-4 suspension, or Tubbataha Reef’s 7Wonders selection.

Our current political crisis has triggered the Filipino online community to encourage everyone to take a more active part in the fight against graft and corruption in the government. Manuel L Quezon III enjoined all Filipinos to support the Black and White Movement. Manila Bay Watch praised Jennifer Llarena’s initiative to have a blogswarm against Pres Arroyo. And Atty Ma. Gracia Rinoza-Plazo disagrees with the administration’s claims that Jun Lozada doesn’t have any evidence. We are not yet certain as to who will prevail in this crisis. What’s certain is that Filipino online community have proven that they are truly a force to be reckoned with. 

The Minuses:

1. Digital footprints can get you fired in your job - JP Habaradas of jaypeeonline.net blogged about the CNN producer who got fired for his blog posting. JP reminded part-time bloggers working in companies to be aware of their company’s rules and restrictions on blogging and personal internet use.

2. Digital footprints can get you in trouble in school - JC Masajo of akosijcmasajo.com had a falling out with school administrators for blogging about a financial anomaly in his college’s publication. USA Today’s article, “What you say online could haunt you,” gives us more cases of students getting in trouble with teachers and administrators because of what they’ve written in their blogs and social networking pages.[3]

3. Digital footprints can get you arrested - Michael of basapa.com expressed his emotions about the arrest of Filipino problogger, Mark Verzo, author of BoyBastos.com. Michael gave a summary of bloggers’ reactions to the first incidence of “blog-crime” in the Philippines.

Abe Olandres of yugatech.com wrote ten ways to avoid the Boy Bastos Treament and prevent you from being bullied by people in high places.

4. Digital footprints can damage your job application - Jacqui Cheng gave caution to job applicants to clean up their online information. She cited a survey conducted by business social networking site Viadeo, which says that one-fifth of hiring managers have used the Internet to find personal information about potential job candidates, and a quarter of those have rejected candidates based on what they found.

5. Digital footprints can affect a judge’s decision in a lawsuit - Twenty-two year old Jessica Blinkerd received a tougher-than-expected sentence for drunk-driving and vehicular manslaughter. The reason: After the accident, she posted pictures of drinking and partying in her MySpace account. The judge used the photos as evidence that probation or community service will not reform the 22-year old convict. Blinkerd was given a 5-year jail sentence.[4]

6. Digital footprints can be inaccurate and biased reactions - It’s easy to get carried away with the opinions of highly-opinionated bloggers. Often, we can’t help but share our reactions and comments in their blogs. Sometimes we even use rude words when expressing ourselves. But we have to keep in mind that some bloggers don’t have the same balanced judgment and ethical standards that we can expect from journalists. Four years ago, Annalyn Jusay of annalyn.net pointed out the differences between journalists and bloggers. Bloggers are not required to abide by the journalists’ code of conduct. This is not to say that bloggers’ views are inaccurate and not interesting. 

Personally, I enjoy reading other bloggers’ opinion posts because of the facts and insights I gain from them. But before I react to posts in blogs, I like to read what other bloggers think. And before I submit my comment online, I read it first and ask myself, “Is this something I can be proud of when I read it ten years from now?”

7. Digital footprints can expose you to identity-theft - Since 1999, identity theft has been the number one consumer complaint in the US.[5] Dare Obasanjo describes how social networking sites such as Facebook expose those who are unfazed by the possibility of identity theft.[6]

8. Digital footprints can lead to misuse, abuse and/or misinterpretation - Toingks.com posted the controversial pictures of American Idol hopeful, Ramiele Malubay. The photos were taken from Facebook.

Another Pinoy website that is filled with scandalous photos and videos is http://www.txtflix.com/. I feel sorry for the Filipina women who are unaware that pictures and videos of them have been posted in a public domain. I hope our government can take action to protect the identities of the unknowing victims. 

The Interesting:

1. Digital footprints can take up your time - Plugged of PinoyPress.net told us that one of the reasons he shut down his Facebook account was that he was spending too much time on it than he should.

2. Digital footprints can allow you to publish your work instantly - The Pinoy Penman, Mr Butch Dalisay fears that “blogging’s boon–its immediacy and spontaneity–can also be its bane, in that much of what is blogged comes right out of the brain, unedited and unmediated.”

3. Digital footprints can be stored in the Internet Archives forever - JD Lasica wrote about the existence of the Internet Archive. Since 1996, it has been archiving the entire content of the Internet every two months. All the pages - text, video, pictures, etc - are stored forever in San Francisco and Egypt.

4. Digital footprints can be affected by anonymity - Online anonymity is a double-edged sword. People tend to feel less inhibited when they use their online nicknames. They have more confidence in expressing themselves freely. John Grohol explained the potential dangers of this as the anonymity can breed irresponsibility. Netizens can have the tendency to simply write what they want to write without due regard to the accuracy and the consequences of their statements. Tess Termulo of tesstermulo.com attributed this problem to “keyboard courage”. She noticed that those who write insulting or damaging comments are often the ones who are afraid to reveal their true identities.

Add your ideas to the PMI chart

Please let me know if there are things that we can to add to our PMI Chart. As more and more people spend more time in cyberspace, we should be more aware of the positive and negative potentials of the digital footprints we leave behind.

Michelle often reminds me to be careful when posting and commenting and it’s only now that I understand what she means. And from here on end, I’m going to tread carefully in cyberspace.  

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Notes:

[1] Digital Footprints - Online identity management and search in the age of transparency, Mary Madden, 16 Dec 2007 

[2] PMI, Weighing the Pros and Cons of a Decision, MindTools, http://www.mindtools.com/

[3] What you say online could haunt you, USA Today, 8 March 2006.

[4] Invading Our Own Privacy, UTNE Reader, May-June 2007 

[5] FTC Releases List of Top Consumer Fraud Complaints in 2007,  Federal Trade Commission, 13 Feb 2008

[6] Senator Manny Villar filed the Crime of Identity Theft Bill in November 2007 and it is currently pending in the Senate.

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