This week, we explored what it means to be a good citizen online, including both how we treat others (e.g. obtaining consent before sharing information and images of others or avoiding/preventing bullying behaviour) and how we protect ourselves (e.g. safety, privacy and evaluating information through an appropriately critical lens). One of the issues that I am particularly passionate about sharing with my future students is how to navigate all of the misinformation of the information age: what is or is not good science, reliable sources, or legitimate journalism?
In terms of my own web presence and privacy, I have severely limited my options by life choices I started making a long time ago: I became a performer. After over two decades of being an actor, singer, and comedian, thousands of (mostly local; I’m not very famous) people I don’t know personally may know who I am or know certain things about me. I have some presence on hundreds of web pages, including video of me performing my own material:
I am still far from the most famous “Evan Roberts” on the internet (I didn’t actually start the Welsh Christian Revival of 1904; that was a different guy) but I certainly don’t have the option of being diligent about my own privacy anymore. Oh well, it’s a small price to pay for that one time I got free Italian sodas for me and my then girlfriend because the bartender at Peacock Billiards recognized me as Prospero from The Tempest.