Identity had been forever changed by the Internet: formerly it had meant “who you really are” but now it meant “any one of a number of persistent faces that you can present to the digital universe.

– Neal Stephenson

This week we explored the concept of Digital Identity and investigated the kinds of presence people project onto the digital world. We were also asked to read two articles about digital identity. The main takeaway from these articles was that the identity people showcase on social media does not accurately reflect their entire lives. Many people only show the highlights and project an ideal life, while others go as far as displaying different identities for different corners of the internet. This makes sense as different sites can be used to reach different audiences in order to serve different purposes.

The Question is, can you keep these identities separated from each other, and separated from your real life? As technology grows more and more prevalent in every day life the answer seems to move closer and closer to “No, you cannot”. Two videos we watched delved into the consequences that can occur when you are not careful about what you put online. In a Ted Talk by Jon Ronson, we see how a single tweet made by Justine Sacco resulted in the whole of twitter uniting with the goal of ruining her life. I will admit, I remember when her tweet went viral. I was not on twitter and did not actually participate, but I had no sympathy for her. I never did hear her side of the story, and I had no interest in it.

I think it is easy to look at people being shamed on social media and think that they should know better than to post whatever it was that got them in trouble. Especially when I myself am very private and post almost nothing online. However, after watching the Ted Talk I thought about how easy it is to misinterpret what people say in the digital world. Even when messaging loved ones who know me better than anyone else, there are times when they interpret my words in way I had not intended. In the case of communicating with loved ones, there is opportunity to communicate and work through the misunderstanding. However, it seems internet strangers rarely grant that luxury.

With these ideas in mind, my task this week was to cyber-sleuth my classmate Danica Finlay in order to see what kind of identity they present to the digital world. With a quick google, I was immediately able to find a variety of her social media accounts as well as her ePortfolio. Her Instagram was set to private and I was not able to explore her facebook without an account of my own. From those two sites, I was still able to see where she went to school and that her pronouns are she/her. I also found that she has a YouTube channel with one public video for an assignment she did in an EPE class.

Her ePortfolio is where you can find the most information! On this site you can find information about her and her family, where she grew up, her education history, and her teaching philosophy and belief statements. She also has example lesson plans and a ton of resources linked. Something I thought was really cool was her section of quotes that stood out to her.

I think the digital identity I was able to find portrays Danica as a compassionate and dedicated future educator. She has done a good job of managing her online presence in a way that should benefit her and the way she is perceived by future employers, peers, and parents!