newjerseynewsroom.com

BY PAM LOBLEY

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

NOW THAT’S FUNNY

It’s hard to say goodbye to Facebook. What about all those “friends?”

Nevertheless, goodbye is exactly what some people are saying to Facebook. According to the Courier Post, Nielsen Wire, the online arm of consulting group The Nielsen Co., reports that the time spent on Facebook is declining each month, with only preteen and retirees increasing their “face” time.

According to the firm comScore, the monthly growth in Facebook users has fallen to about one million per month. A year ago, it was closer to four million a month. I guess people are deciding they don’t need 200 friends.

I agree. I don’t even like that many people.

Users aren’t exactly closing their accounts because you can’t. You can only “deactivate” them. The site does not allow users to delete their accounts. Instead, you simply disable your profile and remove your name and image from anything you've shared on Facebook.

But people can still contact you, and send you a “miss you” message. Then, perhaps, you may feel obligated to write back. This is why I’m not on Facebook. I don’t miss anybody.

If you’re in my past, please stay there. I like you there. We had some good times, I think, and the memories are fun. Either that or I disliked you and see no reason to change my mind now that you’re just a grown up version of the person I never cared for.

I personally don’t need to show off pictures of my patio or tell you about my recent vacation. I don’t need to be known. Well, that’s not true. I need to be known as the world’s funniest and richest columnist. But I don’t need to be known as someone who had a delicious soft shell crab sandwich while on vacation in North Carolina, and guess what, my son liked it, too! Here he is with a tartar sauce mustache! Don’t you wish you were me?

Facebook still has 153 million unique visitors a month, and Americans average 6 hours and 36 minutes a month on the site. Clearly, it’s still widely used and the people that are signing off represent only a small trend. Many users avow it’s an essential business tool – keeping them connected and networking with colleagues. If you doubt this, just listen to the slightly desperate way that newscasters like Greta Van Susteren or Wolf Blitzer end their nightly broadcasts by imploring you to “friend them on Facebook” or “follow me on Twitter.” Being popular on Facebook is a sign of success.

Next year, I will enter the Facebook world. I have promised my son he can have a page when he is in high school. I can’t wait to see him with a tartar sauce mustache.

Pam Lobley writes the “Now That’s Funny” column. Sign up for her mailing list at www.pamlobley.com.

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