Review of “Terms of Service: Social Media and the Price of Constant Connection,” by Jacob Silverman. New York: Harper. 2015, cloth, 430 pages.

A technological “aside” when it comes to trying to help others…

Joining those social and professional networks, pages, clubs, and groups keeps all of busy and gives us scores of more emails, messages, notes, warnings, and welcomes to deal with each time we turn on our laptops and towers to locate whatever it is somebody needs.  How do we navigate it?  How do we tolerate it?  How do we conquer it?  And what exactly is it?   

This book contains a huge amount of information on the workings of many different online applications and explains some of the rationale for their creation.  Silverman has assembled so much data and history here on Facebook and other goodies we use every day.

Silverman takes us behind the scenes to look at the individuals and the corporations creating and operating all of the great social media.   The book includes the nitty gritty about the marketing and financial reasons things work the way they do.  Very often, what is profitable and what is cheap will drive all kinds of business decisions.  (Do I really need to say this?)

Books like this are very helpful in finding social workers, educators, writers, street helpers, counselors, and psychologists as we try to sort through the thousands of pieces of input and resources and help that we must dig through…looking always for the relevant.

Byproducts of this book are: hints on how to fool Facebook and other spying social media; ways to “detox digitally” and enjoy a normal life off-line; ways to protect ourselves and our loved ones from thieves and stalkers—and very importantly—ways to not get fired by doing stupid things on-line.

This is riveting reading—and I am glad I got the book!  I was wondering if it would be too dry or technical and, no, that was not the case.  I enjoyed reading it and got some ideas from the hints and some strategies to survive off-line more often.  Stopping to smell those roses…going on a long power walk… volunteering in a food pantry…and other activities are a wonderful break from the serious world of education.

High-tech persons with a great love of social media should read this book to get more info on who is doing what out there and why. 

I recommend this book for the social workers and street helpers who are always forced to deal with changing and magical technology that stands in our way as much as it enables us to do our work with people in need.  Finding resources, doing research, finding solutions, and locating allies are all important functions of the social and personal aspects of technology.  Joining those social and professional networks keep us busy.

I recommend this book also for teachers who now have the added work of dealing with on-line communication in addition to teaching, going to meetings, grading papers, attending school events, doing fundraising, keeping current in teaching and research, and a myriad of other educational and community duties.  Sometimes, it is very helpful to be able to sort out what is important and what can be left for later.

I recommend this book to all readers, however, because of the hints on how to avoid being stalked, robbed, cheated, or bamboozled (I cannot believe this version of Word has that verb in its inventory…wow).     

Educators, especially, though, have to deal with helping keep MSW and journalism and undecided-major students safe.  Helping students learn to deal with life off-line for more than a few moments at a time is also healthy and beneficial—for the students and their futures. 

Helping students to set priorities and to detox once in a while and learn to do other activities may be something they thank you for someday.  Or not.