Imagine a dimly lit room, a coffee table that holds a flickering candle and a bottle of contraband wine. Soft music plays from an Ipod that someone has plugged into a pair of speakers. Two teens dressed in mood setting jeans gaze deeply into each other's eyes. The boy leans forward, pauses inches away from her lips. Suddenly, she gasps, "Wait! I'll be right back! I just realized that I haven't checked Myspace all day!"
Ok, now let's come back to reality. Myspace, a popular website which promotes itself as "A Place For Friends," is now a common topic of conversation among today's teens. Such comments as, 'I heard he put her third on his Top Eight.' and 'Third? But he's first on hers!' and 'I know' followed by some significant looks, are daily occurrences. For some people, Myspace has replaced e-mail as the dominant form of virtual communications. The exact purpose of the website is slightly illusive, because, except for collecting an insane amount of 'friends' and posting bulletin chains about zombies or how you have new photos, there really isn't much to do. Yet it somehow supplies enough of something to fascinate people for hours every night.
What, exactly, is Myspace for and why is it that so many people are addicted to it? After talking extensively with teens, I have come up with three hypotheses:
1. Myspace is for crushes
One of the most appealing aspects of Myspace, although few people will admit it, is that it enables you to look at photos of your crushes for as long as you want without their knowledge. Not only that, but by glancing at their Top Eight (or, nowadays, their top 12, 16, 24 or 97) you can see where you stand in relation to others in their affection. You can count, for example, how many other fe/males are above you. You can also click on the profiles of those above you and with a little snooping find out if they are related to your crush, already in a relationship, more than ten years older than your crush, attractive, or if your crush has left them many comments recently. You can also see where they have placed your crush on their Top Eight line up.
Ok, now let's come back to reality. Myspace, a popular website which promotes itself as "A Place For Friends," is now a common topic of conversation among today's teens. Such comments as, 'I heard he put her third on his Top Eight.' and 'Third? But he's first on hers!' and 'I know' followed by some significant looks, are daily occurrences. For some people, Myspace has replaced e-mail as the dominant form of virtual communications. The exact purpose of the website is slightly illusive, because, except for collecting an insane amount of 'friends' and posting bulletin chains about zombies or how you have new photos, there really isn't much to do. Yet it somehow supplies enough of something to fascinate people for hours every night.
What, exactly, is Myspace for and why is it that so many people are addicted to it? After talking extensively with teens, I have come up with three hypotheses:
1. Myspace is for crushes
One of the most appealing aspects of Myspace, although few people will admit it, is that it enables you to look at photos of your crushes for as long as you want without their knowledge. Not only that, but by glancing at their Top Eight (or, nowadays, their top 12, 16, 24 or 97) you can see where you stand in relation to others in their affection. You can count, for example, how many other fe/males are above you. You can also click on the profiles of those above you and with a little snooping find out if they are related to your crush, already in a relationship, more than ten years older than your crush, attractive, or if your crush has left them many comments recently. You can also see where they have placed your crush on their Top Eight line up.
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