In his 1975 book Discipline and Punish, French author Michel Foucault suggests that the real power of a “law” manifests in the way such policies or edicts actually get implemented and the real world impacts that follow, not in the intentions the leaders had in creating the regulations. The original intention, regardless of social value, becomes immaterial. The same might be said of communication messages, regardless of what Marshall McLuhan said about the medium being the message.
In recent months, we have seen an innocuous social networking platform called Facebook – lauded with market valuations in the billions of dollars; immortalized on film as pop culture history; and generally acknowledged as a central hub of the globe’s digitally privileged classes. Most recently, Facebook has been given credit for being central to the revolutions in Middle East countries that have toppled ruthless dictators after decades of oppression. The privileged co-opted the action of a poor fruit vendor’s statement through flames, starting whirl-winds that blurred the lines between electronic and corporeal social networks.
Many of our posts on the Opus Magnum blog pertain to the ever-increasing usage of social media in our personal and professional lives. As Facebook, Twitter, and blogs become part of our daily activities, many business-people are concerned about how to manage their social media content to strengthen their social connections while maintaining a professional image. 
As frequent Opus Magnum readers already know, we enjoy featuring blog posts from our staff, faculty, current students, and alumni, and we occasionally re-post articles and blogs that we believe will be of interest to our readers. However, as the old adage goes, it’s best to get it straight from the horse’s mouth–and in that spirit, we’d like to share links to some of our students’ blogs with you.
Recently, I happened upon one of my favorite blogs only to read an entry that dealt with the importance of boundaries when it comes to being “plugged in.” In an age where social media reigns and networking is continuous, it got me thinking about boundaries and to a greater extent how much balance people have in their lives. It’s one thing to own an Iphone or regularly check your wall on Facebook, but how much time and energy should one expend each day in order to remain connected? What happened to remaining balanced? So many people are attached to BlackBerries and laptops. Blogging, tweeting, text messaging, and emailing are as natural as breathing. Do they have to be? Must we remain open and available to all calls, text messages, and tweets that come in every 24 hours? 
It sometimes seems that there’s a new social networking platform launched every day. Facebook tends to get the most press, but Twitter isn’t far behind. One that all MBAs (and prospective MBAs) should be aware of is 
