Third Part of Ongoing Feature Interviews with Wiley Dickerson, M.D. re' "Social Networking and the New Intellectualism"
DW: Well, as to the story that I actually started Facebook, I would say...well, it kind of invented itself, didn't it?
TM: Of course, but you were instrumental in making it come together...true?
DW:Yeah, I mean... I was there at the beginning and contributing a lot, but I would not claim to have invented it...maybe I did...hmmm, but it wasn't really like that. It was like a core group of very brilliant, Futurist people from all over Cyberspace just throwing out vibes of Raw Creativity and Intellect.
You may find it funny but back then, we called it the "Book of Minds" and every one had a symbol or concept or maybe nothing at all to represent themselves....it was wild..I can still smell the coffee, Adderall and Clove Cigarettes.
TM: Things changed though?
DW: yeah..yeah they did. Everything seems to... doesn't it? ....the Universe expands..people grow up.
TM: Well, I am asking you about FB in Particular...
DW: Well, there was a cadre of people, G-Force was one of them who wanted to take the Abstract out of it all, you know..make it smart but real. She called it the "Book of Faces" and the idea was sorta like... "Hey anemic,computer Geek, get out from behind the Console, put your "Real Face" out there and maybe these intricate, imaginative, and really awesomely influential thoughts would become more real to us...and others.. I guess. You'd have to ask her, but that's what I thought it meant.
TM: And then what happened,?
DW: Man , we lost all control and the masses took over...that's why I would claim to be an innovative force behind the Birth of Facebook, but once there was a Real Face with Real ideas, everybody began to jump on the bandwagon and They were the Real Inventors. We were saying at first," put YOUR face on your Web Page, Skip the Bullshit, and just let it all hang out, your Photo, your creativity, your intellect, your imagination....Man...Put YOU out there.
TM: Then the teens jumped in...
WD: Jumped! ...Holy Shit!... They dove in Facefirst, but they didn't give a damn about the intellectualism, that we were all about....they wanted to chat, flirt, play games..share all kinda of crap with each other.
However.... It wasn't until the young and mid-Life Adults got grooved on to it, did it get weird. At the time, there was no filter..so anybody could write stuff on your page and just be a voyeur on your site.
I rember People writing" F-Off Wiley" or "WTF DOCTOR. DORK, ROFL" on my Page.
I had to laugh, but it was making people uncomfortable, all of a sudden, your ex- from High School was wrting, the guy you hate down the street, People you didn't even remember from ..like... Pre-K !
I think it was Mindy Murff, who got overwhelmed first, almost went catatonic,with all these Weirdo's from High school writing on her "personal" space, sending strange notes, asking her out.... etc....Dr. Patti Walton who wrote "You better Leave my Ass Alone!: No more Cyberbullying!", suggesting putting the Friend filter in..........
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