This house believes that Facebook is not a place for friends - opening speeches

First Proposing speech

To be honest, I am the first one to use Facebook every single day: as soon as I wake up, I use it as a mailbox, I find it really useful in many aspects such as getting in touch with the one you love, with those who are far… You can see pictures of them, follow their lives and rebound with old friends from schoolyard! But still, Facebook is not a place for friends! You may find it awkward to stress that point of view, but in many aspects, Facebook is merely a marketing tool worth billions of dollars. I know that we say that friends are priceless, but don’t you think that all the data you share on that website, the photos you upload, the websites you surf on are all registered and your own profile page is invaded by adverts, and in a nutshell, Facebook tends to be like big brother: it is still watching you! …

by JBB

First Opposing speech

I am sure that anybody who is reading this text has a Facebook profile. I am quite sure too that this person thinks “I am on Facebook but it is a waste of time, I am on it just to do as everybody”. Indeed, very few persons recognize the impressive power of Facebook: it gathers people…

by IG

First Proposing speech

To be honest, I am the first one to use Facebook every single day: as soon as I wake up, I use it as a mailbox, I find it really useful in many aspects such as getting in touch with the one you love, with those who are far… You can see pictures of them, follow their lives and rebound with old friends from schoolyard! But still, Facebook is not a place for friends! You may find it awkward to stress that point of view, but in many aspects, Facebook is merely a marketing tool worth billions of dollars. I know that we say that friends are priceless, but don’t you think that all the data you share on that website, the photos you upload, the websites you surf on are all registered and your own profile page is invaded by adverts, and in a nutshell, Facebook tends to be like big brother: it is still watching you!

First of all, I find it time consuming, it is real addiction, I almost log every single hour, whenever I have a spare minute, when I am commuting… I find it funny yet sad to see random people in the subway staring at their smartphones, “connecting with everyone in the planet” …everyone! Except those sitting next to them! Furthermore, what is the point of having over 300 friends on line? You only keep rather mundane relationship with them, don’t you think? People tend to chat, but do they really interact?

So far, we have only been talking about this new tremendous technology, yet we did not define what we meant by friendship: isn’t it talking about anything or being there when they need you? Silence can be really appreciated as well when a friend is feeling sad, but nothing replaces presence! You have to be with your friends, to really share emotions, ideas, point of views with them… Virtual relationship may be tricky since you may believe that you are in contact with them, that you really follow their lives, choices… but is it real? Do you consider yourself close to all your “facebook friends”? I know it is a fake question since the answer is surely negative. My point here is not to criticize the technology in itself, like I said, I have my account, and I often log, but I am blaming the use of this technology from both point of views: private one and public one.

Beyond the fact that you may be wasting your time on line because you are not here for those around you, beyond a simple definition of friendship, Facebook is still not a place for friends since it is a mercantile tool. How do you cope with the idea that all the data you upload or share on Facebook can be used against you? Some employees were made redundant because HR have seen on Facebook some trashy photos of them, or comments they had on their bosses!! Where do you place the border between privacy and public life? When you try to log on facebook, the first thing you can read is “it’s free and always be”. It is true that you do not really pay attention to that sentence, but when you think about it, isn’t it odd! Why do they specify it? Is it really free to register your email address, your phone number, the places you have been to, the restaurants you liked, the networks you are part of? With all that private data on you, that telecommunication firms had been trying to collect for years, and that you give up in a split second, in a click and for free!! Do you think facebook is really free?

To sum it up, Facebook is a powerful mercantile tool, it is worth billions of dollars, but it may alienate you. What strikes me most is that many a people is on facebook, even my grandmother! And we all give personal data to one company that keeps all your info, your photos, your souvenirs, it really reminds me of 1984, the book from George Orwell, facebook has quite a totalitarian taste! To my opponents, please try to go beyond a mere technological answer and try to link economic, philosophical and social views!

By JBB

First Opposing speech

I am sure that anybody who is reading this text has a Facebook profile. I am quite sure too that this person thinks “I am on Facebook but it is a waste of time, I am on it just to do as everybody”. Indeed, very few persons recognize the impressive power of Facebook: it gathers people.

Firstly, Facebook helps you to strength friendships you already have. Do you want to celebrate your birthday? Facebook allows you to invite all your contacts in one click without wasting time by looking for their email addresses. You can add your location and even a map to find it! I remember the time when I had to decide 1 month before my birthday party to send invitations… Your best friend took great pictures on your birthday and you want to share it with your friends. Put them on Facebook and tag them! Facebook makes your friendships easier. Why could it be not a place for friends?

Moreover, you can develop new friendships thanks to Facebook. Recently, I was navigating on the website when I found a friend of friend who was sharing exactly my opinion about movies. Then, I went to a party with our common friend and I met him.  This party was crowded and I directly talked with him because I knew we had something in common. I spent a great night talking about cinema and now he is a very good friend of mine. Without Facebook, I would miss him for sure in that overpopulated place.

Lastly, Facebook is the better way to rediscover your friends. When you leave your high school or your university, you often lose some friends who don’t take the same professional path as you. Facebook is a link to follow old friends. For example, most of my high school friends work in the south of France. I lost their phone numbers but some of them found me on Facebook. One of them added me on Facebook and asked me for a diner in Paris because he was there for his work. Finally, I discovered a new friend and now we have used to see each other when he comes in Paris.

To conclude, I am the first to say that Facebook is full of drawbacks: addiction, waste of time, violation of the private life… But Facebook is only a tool and you are free to use it or not, you are also free not to expand all your life in details on it. That is to say that you are responsible of the informations you put on Facebook. We can take only the best functionalities in it. Facebook is a place for friends if you decide to use it carefully and allow you to create a strong virtual link between your friends and you. Actually, friendship is not a matter of website. Nevertheless, a website can be a way to express friendships and no one can argue that Facebook is not the best website to do it.

by IG