PROGRAM SUCCESS – JULY 2011
PAGE 29
The 6
Commandments
of Online Photo
Sharing
By Andrea Bartz and Brenna
Ehrlich, Special to CNN
The six commandments of photo sharing.
focus on Facebook photos, tag-able Flickr
photos and really any image you send out into the world
via a blog, tweet, or other online platform.
This includes but is not limited to: streaking, sharing a
joint, hanging out on the wrong side of a “no trespassing”
sign, and raising a glass with a 19-year-old cousin. I don’t
care whether it’s tagged or not, if it goes online the subject
is screwed. In fact, delete it. It never happened. What “no
trespassing” sign? Well, welcome to 1984: Insurers can, and do, scour your
Facebook account and deny claims based on what they
find there. A recent article in “SELF” magazine tells of a
young woman booted from her depression-related
disability insurance after she posted pics of herself
smiling with friends.
Now, obviously we’re not suggesting you only post
photos of yourself looking miserable (or, alternatively,
scuttle under a rock and erase your online presence in an
attempt to outmaneuver HMOs), but do play it safe. Get a
thumbs-up before posting pics of a pal, say, sucking on a
cancer stick.
...Anyone obviously inebriated. ...pictures of anyone in a bathing suit.
Do we really need to tell you this? Apparently, yes, based
on the bevy of despicable photo blogs devoted to the
topic. They feature shots of barely conscious imbibers
who should be in the back of ambulances, not curled up
around toilets while their friends pull out cameras. So
here you go: DON’T TAKE OR POST SUCH
PICTURES. We also don’t recommend getting that
slizzared, but hey, this is Netiquette, not Life Advice. There are a few people who keep their Facebook profiles
bikini-free, either because of body image or professional
concerns (yeah, if you’re FB friends with your boss, you
might not want her to see you flouncing around in a
stringy triangle top, clutching a coconut-shell cocktail). It
never hurts to check beforehand (and hey, if she gives you
the red light, you’ve got some instant blackmail material).
Thou Shalt Not Post Pics of...
...Anyone doing anything illegal.
...Anyone making out.
Wedding kissies are one thing, slobbery tongues are
another. It’s humiliating for the photographed and
horrifying to helpless witnesses. Thou Shalt Check with
the Subjects Before Posting...
...Anyone doing anything
insurance might not like.
their
health
...throwback photos.
There is but one flaw with the photo album/lock-box
comparison: the mighty scanner. Your friend might find
that photo of herself as a pizza-faced 13-year-old with her
arm deep in a Doritos bag hilarious, or she might find it
completely devastating, depending on which way her self-
esteem headed post zit-addled adolescence. Ask in
advance of launching that well-intentioned trip down
Memory Lane.