Here is my little Internet PSA, especially for those of you who are TV-less! :-) I was watching Good Morning America this morning and two stories really underpinned the affect that the internet can have on a person's professional reputation.....
The first was about the lopsided policies of American Idol with regards to treatment of contestants who had "racy" pictures appear on the Internet when they were contestants. Most of us remember Frenchie from Season 2 of Idol who was booted from the show for photos of her, topless and in lingerie, that surfaced on the internet. Now, Antonella Barba, a prettier, skinnier, whiter, and less talented contestant is being supported by American Idol and has remained on the show despite a number of riske and "Girls Gone Wild" like pictures that are bouncing around the web.
The second was a story about how a Yale law student with perfect credentials found that she could not get job interviews and callbacks because of false statements made about her by "friends" on the internet. Reportedly 11-33% of employers do internet searches on job candidates.
Both of these stories really underpin how "unanonymous" the internet can be and how what you post can come back and bite you. While most of these hard lessons are being learned by a younger, MySpace generation who is manically sharing intimate details of their lives online, everyone should be aware of what the internet says about you. There is even a name for this -- narcisurfing! Now, I have googled my name before just to see what is out there about me. I am sure many of you have done so as well. But I was a little taken aback when a new friend of mine made a comment to me about a blue dress I wore in a wedding many years before we met and had never spoken about. So, even if you have done this before, as internet search engines become more robust and refined, the results that come up may change. I now see, in addition to the wedding pictures my friend mentioned, information from my high school alumni website coming up when I search my name, which wasn't there before. Now, none of this worries me personally but it is something to be mindful of......
Also, consider that your internet "alias" may not be as anonymous as you think either. I am amazed by the screennames and pictures that grown women are using to represent themselves on Internet dating sites..... In these profiles, people share where they live, it is conceivable that you could be recognized by someone from you internet dating profile. I remember when I first got on an internet dating site, did a search and easily found the profile of someone that I worked with. Also, I know of people with blogs high readership that get recognized on the street in their hometown or when traveling through the pictures they have posted.
Interestingly, this issue has spawned a new set of services available to "clean up" or defend a person's internet reputation. Companies like reputationdefender.com help people identify and "destroy" negative or inaccurate content about them on the internet.
This issue gives the saying "Know thyself" a whole new meaning! Just something to think about! Enjoy your day!
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I didn't see Good Morning America, but I attended a conference in Seattle and one of the things they warned us about was Myspace. The presenter stated more and more employers are googling potential employees and some are being overlooked for positions because of such things as a Myspace page that maybe a bit racy or reveal too much. Good post.
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