By Tara Walker
On Louisiana State University’s campus, swimmer Eddie Kenney, and a fellow teammate were shocked when their actions on Facebook.com, a social networking site, landed them in hot water, due to the invasion of their network privacy. In May 2005, both were dismissed from the swim team once athletic officials found they were members of a Facebook group that posted negative comments about the team’s coaches. Kenney, who has since transferred to Purdue University, said he has definitely learned his lesson.
“Facebook is dangerous right now,” Kenney stated in a February 2006 USA Today article. “You’re supposed to have fun with [it], but you need to be careful.”
Kenney’s experience is one that could happen to many student athletes while they are off the playing field and outside the classroom. Facebook is one of the most popular social networking sites on the Web and has become an integral part of several college communities. The site’s homepage offers a straightforward description of what it is all about; an online directory that connects people through social networks.
Facebook provides several avenues to interact with others in addition to searching for people at other schools and making groups and events with friends. Members of Facebook can send messages, post photos and create blogs. The site’s creators have provided several privacy controls for users to specify what others can view. There is still a possibility that negative content on a student’s page will be discovered by the wrong person.
The University of Louisville has not chosen to ban Facebook but is censoring athletes’ usage.
“They have chosen to block Facebook and similar social networks from academic computer labs due to the amount of time athletes could spend on this activity,” said Dr. Holly K. Sheilley, assistant compliance director and director of championship tournaments. The athletes are encouraged to use extreme caution when posting information and to also consider team policies as a guide for behavior in using the site.
Though the usage of such Web sites is meant to be lighthearted, it seems schools may have valid reasons for placing restrictions on student athletes’ activities as they could unintentionally lead to serious situations. Robyn White, a junior psychology student and member of U of L’s tennis team, admitted to knowing of a couple athletes who had restraining orders issued because they were being stalked by other Facebook members.
“It airs too much of your business,” said Daniel Cameron, sophomore political science major and a member of the football team. In terms of athletes’ eligibility status, they could even violate NCAA regulations if they are not careful.
“In some cases [Facebook] has led to students inadvertently speaking with a sports agent,” Sheilley said. U of L athletic officials do occasionally make random visits to Facebook, but Sheilley pointed out that if something negative is found it is more often by mistake and they are more concerned for the athletes’ well-being. “We are not looking for athletes doing wrong,” Sheilley said.
Despite the fact that privacy invasion has been a professed problem among online social networks in the recent months, there are benefits to being a member. Most, including student athletes, who use Facebook and similar sites consider them a harmless method by which they can simultaneously meet new people and stay current with familiar faces.
“I can see people from elementary school, and keep in touch with family,” said Lamar Alston, a sophomore sports administration student and member of U of L’s football team.
But there are others who disagree with Facebook’s ‘free flow of information’ approach adopted by the site’s creator, Mark Zuckerberg. It creates the opportunity for students to associate with high profile students on campus.
“I think it is a competition; like a satisfaction quota,” White said in reference to those who may have added her as a Facebook friend just because she is an athlete. Alston said he normally accepts new friend requests, but admits to never meeting half of them.
Sheilley’s fascination of the popularity of Facebook and similar sites led her to extensive research on the topic with Professor Linda Sharp from the University of Northern Colorado.
“The social networking phenomenon is not going away [if student athletes insist on using the sites.] It boils down to making good choices,” Sheilley said.
Whether individuals use Facebook for fun or whether they use it for mischief or a mixture, this method of communication may be around for awhile, and the positive and negative effects should not and will not go unnoticed.
