Almost a decade ago, Che Kothari sat in the glow of his computer, searching for a connection. ICQ, the Internet’s first instant messaging service, consumed the screen. He recalls how that technology changed the way he interacted with the world.
“I would stay up all night. There was no phone bill. It was free. It was my way of communicating and staying in touch,” he said. “In my mind I had already seen the potential.”
The service, whose name is a homophone for “I seek you,” was integral in the creation of Kothari’s Bohemian Ethic music festival, which took over Guelph’s downtown square in 2001. And as technology has progressed, so has his vision.
The 27-year-old now heads Toronto’s Manifesto Festival, a grassroots organization that showcases hip-hop arts to improve communities. He loves how people from all over the world interact with the project – and with hundreds of Twitter followers and thousands of Facebook members, it looks as though they like it, too. But what Kothari really loves is seeing individuals use technology in constructive ways.
“When I witness people using technology in a responsible way to make an impact and make healthier communities, that’s what makes me happy,” he said.
But using social media constructively requires a bit of soul searching, because issues such as time spent online, privacy and a lack of human connection can intimidate users. Rhonda McEwen, an assistant professor at the iSchool Institute at the University of Toronto, says users should think carefully about how they want to incorporate technology in their lives.
“You fit it into your life in the way that works best for you,” she said. “We’re making choices online. And those are choices we have to live with.”
Kothari chose to connect to others through platforms such as Skype, MSN, Facebook and many more. But plugging into so many outlets has proven to be overwhelming, even for him. He plans to unplug for the month of January – no cell phone, no laptop, except for emergencies.
“If you don’t take time for yourself, you’re not at your best,” he said. “This is my way of striking some balance right now.”
But for some, switching off can produce just as much anxiety as being constantly logged on. McEwen’s studies show that 17 to 22-year-olds feel disoriented when their cell phones are out of commission.
As a result, she doesn’t believe that unplugging is a permanent solution. Instead, she encourages social media users to individualize their technology use.
“I think it’s just about testing it out and seeing what’s comfortable for you and also realizing that you don’t have to be always on, always producing,” she said.
Having been inundated by instant notifications on Skype, MSN and Facebook, Kothari has turned them off. Now he can separate the wheat from the chaff.
“Now there’s way less buzzing,” he said. “I would be able to go and tap into that whenever I wanted to, but it wasn’t attacking me all the time. I was attacking it when I wanted to.”
For Yasmin Razack, the issue with social media isn’t the time spent online -- it’s the way people use it. As Centennial College’s curriculum consultant, she regularly updates www.humanracebook.com, a website modelled after Facebook that is dedicated to global affairs.
She believes that users should balance the freedom of the Internet with awareness, especially when it comes to concerns over online privacy.
“If you’re an informed person on Facebook, you’re just more careful,” she said. “You don’t post things about your work and you don’t post inappropriate content.”
In fact, for Razack, staying informed is the most beautiful aspect of social networking.
“We can form a collective through social media, demonstrate and rally against unjust causes through social media. And I really like that.”
She especially likes seeing online dialogue blossom into tangible action. Last summer, HumanRaceBook formed a collective when it opened a G20 discussion forum. Over 170 students participated online and then left their computers to attend Centennial’s mock G20 summit.
“Students got to see it unfold online and think about those issues and became really aware of them. They came armed with questions when they came to the event. That’s what made a difference,” she said.
McEwen says that the healthiest social media use goes hand-in-hand with real-world relationships.
“As humans, we have experiences offline that allow us to find support elsewhere. I don’t know anyone who only has relationships on social media,” she said.
Kothari hopes his next project will operate in the same way. His upcoming festival, One Love, will launch in various cities in 2012. He plans to connect each site through video screens so that billions of people around the world can learn from one another.
“We are so blessed to have these types of tools to connect with the whole world, and now what are we going to do with them? Are we going to sit there and promote negativity? No,” he said. “Let’s promote love and positivity and address negativity.”
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