Couchsurfing - A Global Network, A Global Community
According to the Couchsurfing (CS) website, CS "Connects travellers with a global network of people willing to share in profound and meaningful ways, making travel a truly social experience" (Couchsurfing International inc, 2013). To give a further explanation, CS, like other social networks (SNs), allows users to create a profile of themselves to be viewed by any other users. Unlike most SNs, CS is aimed at connecting strangers. You are either a registered as a host or a surfer. As a host you can connect with travellers and invite them to stay on your couch, as a surfer you can connect with locals and stay on their couch.
As a user of CS, I can see that I created my profile keeping true to my perception of my identity. In our BA1002 lecture week 2, we discussed branding, how SNs lead us to create a brand of ourselves, hiding that which we do not want others to see. CS profiles may do this to an extent, however the second step, meeting people, seems to limit your ability to create a false persona.
"The site has over one million members that live in over 230 countries and 62,000 cities, using 302 languages"
(Rosen et al, 2011, p 983 )
CS empowers users in the real world by extending the boundaries of their world. In the past, travellers were limited to the houses of friends or family. CS gives you freedom in virtual and physical space.
As a group we studied the Flâneur "an androgynous spectator of virtual spaces" (Barnes G, 1997, ). The cyber Flâneur can move freely through CS and not only observe people's persona, but their life experience and interactions. As a couch surfer you have no privacy filter options for your profile. Any Couchsurfer can be watching you at any time. You are in a virtual Panopticon, you don't know when or who, but it can be assumed you are being watched. However unlike some most SNs Couchsurfers sign up deliberately to be watched by strangers.
In conclusion, CS is a SN that challenges the norm. While it has a lot of similarities to other networks, it has another element. The purpose is to encourage real life interactions and cultural experiences with strangers.
References
Allen J (2003) Lost Geographies of Power Malden, USA Blackwell Publishes Ltd
Couchsurfing International inc (2013) Values. Retrieved from: www.couchsurfing.org/n/values
Lauterbach D, Truong H, Shah T, Adamic L (2009). Surfing a Web of Trust: Reputation and Reciprocity on CouchSurfing.com. Computational Science and Engineering 4 346 - 353
Couchsurfing International inc (2013) Values. Retrieved from: www.couchsurfing.org/n/values
Barnes G (1997) Passage of the Flanuer. Retrieved from: http://www.raynbird.com/essays/Passage_Flaneur.html
Lauterbach D, Truong H, Shah T, Adamic L (2009). Surfing a Web of Trust: Reputation and Reciprocity on CouchSurfing.com. Computational Science and Engineering 4 346 - 353
Rosen D, Lafontaine P.R, Hendrickson B (2011). Couchsurfing: Belonging and Trust in a Globally Cooperative Online Social Network. New Media & Society 13(6), 981 - 99
Couchsurfing(CS)gives an affordable way to travel and to experience culture from the kindness and hospitality from a person of that culture. This provides a far richer connection then if staying at a backpackers or hotel. Couchsurfing connects people from all over the world and fosters cultural exchange ("couchsurfing News," 2013) Researching further about (CS) there was only one incident were the host had prayed and raped the couchsurfer. That is the crux of couchsurfing: reliance on the kindness of strangers. It is possible to manipulate the trust of others for personal gratification. The process requires a great deal of trust to be beneficial to both the host and the couchsurfer ("How safe is couchsurfing," 2010). It is a shame that one incident recorded can tarnish the reputation of a great idea for those wanting to travel. Overall, the thousands of people who have couchsurfed have had a utopic experience.
ReplyDeleteI really like the CouchSurfing concept, that a majority of people are on the site solely to meet people from another culture, with no financial incentive. And the culture of trust that the website has produced.
ReplyDeleteI think the main moral guideline of the website is that; it is more than just a place to crash, CouchSurfing is about meeting people, and about the hippy-like conviction that if we all just traveled the world a bit more, we’d understand each other much better.
I wonder what the future holds, now that the site has changed from a non-for profit into a for-profit company. (Tweney, D 2011).
Tweney, D ( 2011). "Benchmark plops down $7.6M to make CouchSurfing into a for-profit". VentureBeat. Retrieved 13 August 2013.