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Thus the question: are multiple technologies, coupled with too much information on tap (and too little time), leading to a slowdown in the fine art of gossiping? Well, there are many who agree, pointing to all the personal information vomited out on social networking sites—like Facebook and Twitter—that has led to a sense of ennui of sorts. If people voluntarily reveal so much (did I really need to know you find New York firefighters hot?), then where is the joy in the hunt for that little morsel of spicy innuendo?
Actually, nothing could be further from the truth. By all indications, life has become more open to prying eyes thanks to various forms of technology, from social networking sites to one-on-one chats, from tell-all blog posts to the downright bitchy anonymous comments. There’s just so much more gossip to sms away. For proof, it took me barely five minutes on Facebook to wonder why a friend "wishes things were different"; how on earth has a schoolmate managed to build "my very own li’l Taj Mahal"?; and why is that pretty young lady "happyyyyy"...soon after being "HUNGOVER"?
As a corporate head tells me in a matter-of-fact tone, he closely monitors the status updates of team members—"believe me, the cigarette break is now dominated by discussions about the latest rounds of updates or pictures". Hearsay has been replaced by fact, honesty—and in the case of sites like Twitter, heavily loaded opinion that provides more fodder for gossip. It also helps that it’s getting tougher to pretend being someone else on these sites. Who has the time? In any case, it’s easy to connect the dots.
While many companies are now banning such sites at the workplace, there’s really no control on the after-hours. Work gossip has been long institutionalised in bitchy industry blogs and even special sites devoted to gup-shup (whispersinthecorridors.com, for one, is a veteran site on government transfers and the like) with banner ads to boot. Of course, some of this could be tactical: like when a TV news anchor’s status revealed she was "fed up" and "wonders how long she will take this shit". Or when it was suggested (and perhaps we will never know) that the ‘fake’ ipl blog was but a smart marketing tool.
Most Internet users lurk silently on websites, preferring anonymity—that’s why gossip (or simply hate) flowers on message boards and comment fields. As a keen watcher of technology trends put it aptly, "networks assist gossip as well as its counter...the truth". Now that is worthy of a round of gossip. Offline, anyone?
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