Wednesday, January 28, 2009 9:48 PM CST
Facebook winning the smackdown among college students
By NATHANIEL WEST, Staff Writer
nwest@jg-tc.com
If MySpace and Facebook were vying for popularity among local college students in the form of a cage fight, MySpace would be on its back, about ready to tap out.
Students at Eastern Illinois University and Lake Land College almost universally said Facebook is their preferred social networking site, leaving the pioneering MySpace now looking like a chump.
“I just don’t like MySpace,” said Bethany Nolte, a freshman at LLC.
Students praised Facebook’s variety of applications and layout that simplifies communication with friends. And, in general, students complained about what they said are MySpace’s childish design and privacy problems.
In a survey last year by Youth Trends, Facebook emerged as the most popular among 17- to 25-year-olds, and especially among women in that age group, 70 percent of whom chose the social networking site that first gained popularity on college campuses.
But there are a few college students who still opt for MySpace. At EIU, senior Alex Wolters does not have a Facebook account, largely because of his pressing schedule.
“I barely have enough time for MySpace,” he said.
At the same time, he added, “A whole bunch of my friends have” Facebook.
Brett Reichart, a student at LLC, uses Facebook’s email application. Just this week, his girlfriend sent him a message with information about a piece of jewelry she would like as a birthday present.
“Everybody uses Facebook for everything now,” he said.
He added that he does not like the spam one encounters with MySpace. “Facebook was originally designed for college kids,” he said.
“I like the layout of the site a lot better.”
Shelton Penrow, a junior at EIU, has both Facebook and MySpace accounts. “I like Facebook,” he said.
“It seems like you interact faster with the people you want to talk to,” whereas MySpace is “more of an entertainment outlet,” he said.
Nolte said Facebook’s chat function in particular makes it “easier to chat without everyone knowing what you’re saying.”
Eastern sophomore Brooke Bettorf likewise has accounts on both social networking sites. “But I don’t ever get on MySpace anymore,” she said.
“MySpace just got (to be) too much. It’s so glammed up, with so many applications. I just like the simplicity of Facebook.”
Lake Land freshman Matt Bly has Facebook and MySpace accounts, but he uses Facebook more. However, he said he still likes the “free music” on MySpace, and he still logs in from time to time “because some people don’t have both.”
Eastern freshmen Leslie Williamson and Andrea Stec were communicating with each other on Facebook even before freshmen orientation last fall.
Williamson said she also believes it is harder for someone to assume a false identity or create a fake account on Facebook.
“And MySpace is more juvenile,” she said.
Lynette Miller, a freshman at LLC, also has both MySpace and Facebook accounts, although she uses the latter more frequently. “I like Facebook better,” she said.
“Most of my friends use it more than MySpace,” Miller also said, adding that she appreciates the news feed on Facebook, which shows “everything that’s going on in everyone’s lives, pretty much.”
Wynn Buerkett, a freshman at EIU, said she enjoys the ease with which photos can be uploaded and shared on Facebook.
But she also feels the occasional pang of regret with how ubiquitous Facebook has become. “My mother has (Facebook), unfortunately,” she said jokingly.
“Nowadays it’s more of a way for connecting with people you don’t see. It’s better than MySpace for that.”
She concluded, “I think MySpace is trashy ... There’s just creepy people on MySpace.”
Contact Nathaniel West at nwest@jg-tc.com or 238-6860.
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