Research: The Social Network Movie

I decided that seeing as I am doing an animation on social networks it would be worthwhile having a look at the film The Social Network (2010). The Social Network is based around how Facebook was created and that battles it had as people got to grips with the site, including the reactions they had with the features. The image to the right is one of the promotional posters for the film. This statement conveys how even creating a ‘social community’ leads to negative effects on the social lives of many involved. "In a fury of blogging and programming, what begins in his [Mark Zuckerbergs] dorm room soon becomes a global social network and a revolution in communication."

I found a blog written by someone called Aaron who commented on the fact that the only parts of this poster which convey it is about Facebook is the blue bar down the side and then that fact it says "500 million friends". Just by seeing that statement everybody knows it is referring to Facebook and to on-line, virtual friends.

Link to Aaron's Blog on The Social Network

One of the main characters in the film is Mark, the actual inventor and programmer of the page. He's girlfriend makes an enlightening claim by pointing out that "the Internet's not written in pencil, Mark, it's written in ink"(The Social Network, 2010). The film therefore reveals how once something is posted or uploaded on-line there is no going back, you may be able to delete it but it will remain in archives stored forever. Anything placed on-line cannot just be erased. This raises concerns over privacy and security issues that we face when using the internet, many do not think about the harm they could be doing with what they post.