Shivers Down my Spine: Lessons On Writing in a Public Space
September 12, 2008 by Terry Carter
Last night’s revelation in the Org Learning class that one of our students in the program had been called into his senior leader’s office for a blog post he had written certainly sent shivers down my spine … that’s the LAST thing that we want in our attempts to enhance reflective practice through blogging! Our goal is for this to be a positive experience, one rich with learning from your fellow classmates and your own reflections. (Although I’m sure there’s been some reflection going on about that incident by more than one person now.)
In this situation, the organization (unbeknowst to the employee / M.Ed. student) uses Internet tracking software or a tracking service so that they are notified anytime their company name appears on the net. It appears to be an effort to manage the organization’s image and the public perceptions of them by seeing what is out there. The student had criticized a company training session that was less than well-designed. His hope is to be in a position one day to influence the type of training offered … to make it more learner-centered and a better use of employee time. I sincerely hope he will have that opportunity because I know he wants the best for his company.
It’s a good reminder to all of us that we are writing in a public space, visible to anyone. ANYONE. So, perhaps now is a good time to reiterate options that our M.Ed. students have for publishing in this Web 2.0 world.
On Edublogs, you can
- Opt for private posts (publish them so you can see them, but no one else can) when you have things to “get off your chest.”
- Choose a pseudonym for your name on your blog (yes, send it to me and we’ll make sure that Dr. Muth and I update our sites and ask others in the program to use your pseudonym instead of your name if they list you in their Blogroll, as well).
- Refer to your organization with initials, a pseudonym, or as “my organization,” if you are concerned about naming your place of employment when you relate what you are learning to your experiences in the workplace.
- If you feel it necessary, create an alternate blog with a domain name that is not your personal name. http://comingabout.edublogs.org is an example of a domain name that does not identify the user.
- Put a disclosure on your About Page that asserts the ideas in your blog as your own, and not representative of your organization.
To my way of thinking, this is not an occasion for “retreat” – or a reason to abandon the blogging. The web is here to stay. The lines between our public and private lives have become increasingly blurred in the 21st century. We all have a presence on the web already — just Google your name and find out on how many website you already appear: organizations, clubs, high school reunion pages, facebook, LinkedIn, etc. The question, as my colleague and friend Jeff Nugent at the Center for Teaching Excellence at VCU says, is how to take charge of and manage our reputation on the web. If we don’t, then the web will manage our reputation for us.
So, lessons learned: take precautions, use care, write authentically but safeguard your own reputation and that of others with whom we are associated. It’s a brave new world. Your thoughts?
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It is certainly food for thought…but I agree with you that it alone is not reason to retreat. It would be interesting to know if the company talked to the student in a proactive way or in a chilling way. Clay Shirky noted in his book HERE COMES EVERYBODY that the web can not only inform a boss that an employee has blogged about them, but can also inform the rest of the organization and stakeholders if an employee is wronged by administration. It is a double edged sword.
Britt,
You make an excellent point that actions taken by the organization can also become public knowledge in this world of open access. My hope is that our our students become reflective about this medium and how to use it well. That is a special form of 21st century knowledge, rarely codified in what is considered “education!” tjc
Dr. Carter,
This was some of my concern as you know, from our class and discussion about making posts private.
On the same topic: From my own experience and that of others I know who are regularly part of the hiring process in their organizations, I think it has become common practice for search committees to aggressively search the web for information on applicants, for any organizational position. I’ve seen this sort of information used to evaluate a person’s potential work attitude, character and even writing skills.
Applicants and everyone beware, people ARE looking at your facebook site, your blogs and anything else you’ve put you name on out on the grand WWW. I think it is interesting how people will open up on the web, esp in personal blogs.. as if when on the web we are standing behind a mirrored window, when in fact there is no glass there at all.