Last week Facebook unveiled it's new Open Graph API. What this means is that other websites will gain the ability to customise your web experience more easily using your data from Facebook.

For instance, if you have logged into Facebook and then went to another website which used the new Graph API you would find the website more customised and personalised to your tastes. This is the next stage in Facebook's plan is to 'socialise' the web. Facebook aims to be the first port of call when you open your browser and they also want the websites you visit afterwards to have customised content based your usage of Facebook.

Is this a good or bad thing for users?

The jury is still out on that one! Facebook has been transparent in their explanation of what is happening and their plan for a Social Graph. However, do people or even Facebook themselves or other companies involved really understand the consequences of such an action?

Facebook's rise to dominance has seen its user-base grow to over 400 million. It is now in a unique position to attempt such a bold feat as 'socialising' the web. Thanks to its continued popularity Facebook has a massive amount of user data which up till now has been used for social adverts and applications within Facebook.

I am sure other companies have been dying to harness the power of this. Not least of these is Microsoft now who want to offer their Office Software as social web apps. This means you might soon be logging into Facebook in order to use Word or Excel online!

However, there are privacy issues that go along with this. Lots of people have trusted Facebook with private and personal data and to be seen as exploiting this could be disasterous.

From a user's perspective Facebook will argue that this will enhance your experience of the web and make it more personalised. Of course we will have the chance to opt of this new development but how many people will understand the intricacies what the social graph could mean for them. We should ask ourselves is this something we really want and are we willing to be just swept along with the tide? Are we happy about other companies using our data for their research? Facebook can certainly see the benefits and will shout to the hills about it but can we?

Maybe you have all the information and customisation you need right now and do not need anything else....

As I write this Twitter has been shut down and Facebook is experiencing problems as Twitter users log on there instead. Social media world has been brought to a temporary stand-still and it is interesting to see what effect this is having online. This got me thinking on the world we are now moving into.

While people may criticise social media for 'dehumanising' our interaction I would argue it opens many doors for people across the world to communicate with each other in ways that we never could have dreamed of before. However, this assumes that people know and understand how to use these online tools properly and also understand the consequences of their actions.

Recently in the UK, we have heard about the new phenomenon of 'sexting' where people send each other naked photos of each other with no regard for the fact this may quite literally 'bite them on the ass' later on. Sour grapes and jealousy from ex-partners can be a potent force and can quite easily lead to compromising photos being shared online or posted on websites. The key thing is to remember that what happens in online world has repercussions in the offline world.

So powerful is this force that countries like Iran and China have are trying to impose strict limits on internet activity. Businesses are desperately trying to control and charge for access to certain parts of the web. However, the internet and the open source philosophy is not about 'walled-gardens' whether it is in business or between nations. It is about sharing information and ideas which crosses international boundaries, cultures, age, and social backgrounds and creating something new we can all benefit from.

For my part, I love the fact I can talk to people from all over the world and learn about them. The old order does not like change but then it never has looking back through history.

Much of the predjudice in the world stems from ignorance so having more information readily available is most likely a more positive than negative thing.

I guess what I am trying to say is simple: wE aRe hErE, wE aRe gLoBaL!

With the rise of new social media channels and other online tools many people have been talking about the decline or even death of the conventional media. This could be one explanation though I feel it could be seen more as an evolution of media.

Unfortunately this evolution is happening very fast and leaving some people in its wake. As Matthew quite rightly put in his comment on my previous post this process is also being quickened by the recession. For instance in Bristol, regional newspapers such as the Western Daily Press, have made large redundancies to their staff. Bristol’s radio scene seems to have shrunk as well with the relocation and redundancies. I think there must be similar trends throughout the UK.

Across the pond in States papers like the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (one of the oldest in Seattle) rolls out its last newspaper today and becomes a totally online entity. They follow in the footsteps of many other US publications to the online realm. Around the world people are utilising media in new ways.

However, I am not sure that journalists and conventional PR people should get too fearful of the new online world. What is needed is an understanding of how their skills could be best used within the online realm. Social media allows obtaining feedback and interaction with an audience which simply was not possible in previous media channels. While this may involve learning a totally new IT skill-set it is preferable than being left on the sidelines as more social media tools appear.

That being said, the instincts for clear communications and stories that conventional PR, Journalists and other people in the media have developed over years of experience are still greatly needed especially in a confusing online world. While web wizardry and social media can dress things up very nice you always need something with substance to begin with.