This blog is really not writing itself. Somehow, I don’t seem to get the right angle. What can I write about from my small part of the world that might interest people all over the world? Let’s give it a try. Again.
I read an article about Facebook and how common it is across different parts of Sweden, and, of course, Stockholm is the most Facebook-active. But to my surprise, Gotland came in second place. That is interesting. How come an island with 57 000 inhabitants can embrace a social media tool like Facebook?
Historically, Gotland has tried the new technical solutions early. Like the train, television, and today, actually, the 4G Network for cellphones. Maybe the Gotlanders feel we have to adopt new solutions early to balance the fact that we live in the middle of the Baltic Sea. Surviving skills.
Another fact is that we are only 57,000 people living here, and it can sometimes feel like belonging to a big club; when something gets popular, it can spread really fast within a close group. When you get the feeling that ”everyone” is doing a certain thing, your need to do the same increases.
Living on Gotland also means that you can easily get in touch with politicians and other important persons. Some of these people joined Facebook early and found new ways to connect. I think that was a very smart move that has made all the participating politicians more human and less political. The distance between VIP and ordinary people is shorter on Gotland and gets even shorter with Facebook.
In the old days, one talked about things we read in the paper, but nowadays, when I meet people, we talk about things we read on Facebook. We are more up to date on the small stuff happening in our Facebook buddies’ daily lives. I think that is good. It makes us feel more alike. Reading about ordinary things people do, like feeding the cat or playing football with your kid, provides balance to all the glamour articles and scandals about famous people. We are getting bored with traditional media and their stereotypical coverage of our world. Facebook gives us ordinary relief.
Even so, some articles are still worth reading. This article in New York Times, about Gotland, for example!
