It’s all about who you know.
As social networking phenomena MySpace and Facebook rise to fame
as two of the most frequented sites on the Internet, each with
several million members, their critics are becoming hard to
ignore.
Recently, both sites have come under fire for the questionable
content users include on their personal ““ though in essence,
public ““ pages. Everything from phone numbers and addresses
to racy pictures and controversial comments can be viewed by
friends, classmates and even strangers ““ including potential
and current employers.
But in a career world reliant on social connections,
particularly for careers in the arts, MySpace and Facebook have
proven that benefits may outweigh risks of potential discovery of a
raunchy photo or a phone call from a dark stranger.
“There can be very positive aspects of these sites,”
said Kathy Sims, director of the UCLA Career Center.
“When you participate responsibly, it can help to reveal a
deeper part of your personality. Students are beginning to realize
that being professional with others is just as important as a good
internship and a good resume.”
Though Sims is hesitant to encourage social networking sites as
a legitimate source for career building, she does see the potential
for MySpace and Facebook to bring together students with similar
future goals through open forums.
“The real cool possibility is that if students start
thinking about establishing groups for people all interested in a
certain field, they could give tips on internships, practice job
interviews and share job experiences,” she said.
UCLA students are taking full advantage of Internet networking
potential by forming common-interest groups to encourage
participation and career development in the arts.
Justin Nels, a second-year computer science and applied
mathematics student, and his roommate, Shaun Westbrook, a
second-year Design | Media Arts student, initially created the
Facebook group “UCLA Film/Music Video Recruitment” to
attract interested extras to participate in their student films and
other film projects.
The online community has quickly evolved into much more since
its inception in Fall 2005.
“It’s turned into both a way for us to tell people
what we’re doing and for people to come find our projects if
they’re interested,” Nels said.
Facebook, for example, is built on the principle of encouraging
networking within a university-wide community, displaying member
and group profiles to other students, staff and faculty. So while
group members have the ability to receive updates on casting days
and upcoming film shoots, anyone on campus can become involved.
“Even non-members can find out about castings. It’s
kind of a cool thing,” Nels said. “Theater (students)
have expressed to me on several occasions that it’s a real
shame that the theater program and the film department don’t
work together at all. (Our group) is kind of like an informal forum
for people to meet each other.”
As opposed to traditional casting calls in newspaper and
magazines, Facebook offers immediate updates on the various
projects of Nels, Westbrook and others, gathering a group of people
the filmmakers can look to for help with future production.
“The cool thing about this group is that we know all the
people in the group are interested in being in projects, so we have
no hesitation in “˜Facebooking’ them about what
we’re doing rather than instant messaging some random
person,” Nels said. “People are now e-mailing us saying
they’ll do whatever we need.”
“I’ve had nothing but pleasurable experiences (with
the group),” he added.
With the immense growth of MySpace and Facebook in terms of
members and public awareness, both have also expanded beyond their
original functions and capabilities.
Along with other improvements, MySpace has recently expanded the
possibilities for networking in the arts communities. Both the
MySpace Music and MySpace Film sections are intended to publicize
upcoming releases from both major and independent record labels and
studios, and help independent artisans find an audience for their
work.
Music artists can post songs and music videos, advertise
upcoming tour dates, and interact with fans, while music festivals
and magazines can create profiles and advertise to the MySpace
masses as well.
With MySpace Film, filmmakers or studios are able to put up
trailers and clips in addition to release and screening schedules
and reviews from their upcoming movies. Film production companies
and film organizations like festivals are also able to network and
advertise.
Phil, the keyboardist for Southern California rock band
Northern, recognizes the career-building potential of MySpace.
According to him, the free promotional tools of MySpace yield 10
times more daily hits than the band’s official Web site.
“Everyone seems to be on MySpace these days, and people
are just comfortable with it,” he said. “In my opinion,
it would just be foolish for an up-and-coming band not to have an
account.”
Meanwhile, online recruitment is increasing outside of the arts
arena as well.
The UCLA Emergency Medicine Research Associates group, also on
Facebook, was established in early 2006 to help spread the word to
interested students about clinical research spots at the UCLA
Hospital open to UCLA undergraduates.
“The EMRA Facebook group was created mainly to inform
those interested in clinical research of the (opportunities) we
were offering. On a secondary level, it is also a way of helping
members keep track of who is in the organization,” said group
creator Jonathan Kang, a first-year student double majoring in
Spanish and history of religion.
“In many ways, having the group available for viewing on
Facebook is a great way to get easy publicity, as well as to
communicate with interested individuals,” he said.
While Kang said he cannot attest to the same success Nels has
had with the setup, he strongly endorses recruiting or advertising
for different types of jobs through the network.
“I would recommend this method of publicity to everyone
because it’s easy, practical and quick to set up,” Kang
said. “With sites like Facebook and MySpace only gaining
members and attention with time, the opportunity and possibility
for career communication and job recruitment only has room to
grow.”
Nels agreed, citing the personal aspects of online
networking.
“It’s not just about me and my roommate,” said
Nels. “It’s about everyone connecting with each
other.”