The Cable Gamer has always been a TV fan, but at the same time, she has understood the reality of Convergence. That is, at some point--as George Gilder was predicting 20 years ago--the TV set, the telephone, and the computer would all converge, into one box, that would display shows, communicate information, and figure things out.
And so today, we see that social networks, such as Facebook, have become major carriers of news and information, including video. Rachel Maddow's interview with Rand Paul, for example, was seen by about 1.5 million people on TV, but was seen another 500,000 times--and counting--online, according to Beet.TV. When you, the viewer, don't really care whether or not you are consuming media from TV, a telephone line, or a computer, that's Convergence. Yes, people still like TV, particularly live TV, but if they want to watch something, they will find a way--and capitalism will make sure that would-be watchers have as many options as possible.
One of those options is social networks. And since Facebook is the homepage for a great many people, that's how they are tipped off to news. So, per the Convergence idea, if a screen is a screen is a screen, then we should think of Facebook as a part of the news-verse, which is to say, it's a part of the Cable Game.
And as such, it should be scrutinized--including by yours truly at The Cable Game. So the fight over Facebook privacy, which has engulfed Facebook in recent weeks, is worth examining. Because of the nature of the Internet, if you watch content online, the online content-provider knows exactly who you are, and what you have watched. Obviously that raises abundant privacy concerns. I mean, it's one thing if advertisers know who you are, so they can sell you soap. It's another thing if Eric Holder knows who you are, and knows that you've been watching, say, Glenn Beck.
If Facebook can't be trusted with our information, then Facebook can't be trusted, period. And TCG seems not to be alone in that harsh judgment: Take a look at the reader poll that appeared on The Wall Street Journal this morning. For those who might have trouble reading the fine print, it shows that of more than 3000 people participating, a full 67.6 percent of those voting graded Facebook's privacy policy with an "F," just 1.3 percent gave the policy an "A."
The Cable Gamer is sure that social networking is here to stay, but she no longer has so much confidence in Facebook's staying power. No doubt the news will be consumed through social networks, but TCG is now going to set her hopes on a social network run by, say, Fox News.
