On the heels of Tuesday's news that U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama will use cellular text messaging (and email, Twitter, etc.) to share his vice presidential pick before alerting the mainstream media through traditional press means, I already know this is the tip of the SMS iceberg.
Like many global citizens, I own a cellphone. I pay about $10 a month for an unlimited text messaging plan but I only text back-and-forth with friends and colleagues, people who I know also use the Short Messaging Service function of their phones.
I don't provide my cellphone number to political activists or advertisers.
Do you?
While clapping at Obama and other politicans harnessing technology for its 21st century purpose, I wonder if would-be voters are aware that regardless which way the election tide turns, any data provided to candidates potentially remains available for them to use any way they want.
If you are an elected official or candidate reading this sentence, would you mind posting a comment below to state on the record that such data is not kept with your staff once Election Day comes and goes?
I wrote last month about the spirit of everyone wanting to be an ambassador of social networking and yearning to be loved and linked, but to what end? Do you share your digits with every Tom, Dick, and Harry who asks for your number to send you targeted messages?
I have no problem with SMS messaging, text messaging, call it what you will, as long as a person can opt-in or opt-out with ease. But I have some questions:
- Do users realize every incoming and outgoing message costs money? Do political and advertorial requests detail this cost?
- What is the prudent course of action when persistent incoming messages, while not spam, are perceived as such?
- Echoing a question from Inside Higher Ed, if you stop and think about last year's Virginia Tech shooting and similar incidents on college campuses where students are more technologically-motivated than administrators, is text messaging the best way?
- If I grant permission to a person or company asking for them to send me text messages, do I have the ability to text them back and engage in an open and transparent one-to-one dialogue?
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