CLAIM : Facebook Ruins Relationships

     The Author Sydney Lupkin, writing for ABC News on May 24, 2012 states that Facebook, as well as other social media sites are responsible for a growing number of divorces and break ups in the United States. She claims that growing numbers of people, across all age spans blame social media for at least some part of the dissolution of their partnerships. Lupkin writes, that according to Divorce Online, an online resource for information pertaining to divorce, “A third of all divorce filings in 2011 contained the word “Facebook.” Lupkin also writes, that according to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, also a divorce information resource, “more than 80 percent of U.S. Divorce attorneys say social networking in divorce proceedings is on the rise.” Lupkin states that by 2011, according to the AAML, in the three years prior, the divorce filings containing the word “Facebook” have risen from 20% to 33%. Almost all of these filings contained the mentioning of inappropriate messages to Facebook “friends” as being a catalyst for the ending of the relationships.

      But there is another side to this debate. The side that claims that Facebook and other social media sites have no bearing on whether or not a couple's partnership ends in divorce or breaking up. According to a Wall street Journal article, the numbers of at least the Divorce Online website, referenced by Lupkin are false. The WSJ article explains that Mark Keenan, managing director at the British based, Divorce-Online (which allows British citizens to file, at a low cost, divorces that are being uncontested) was responsible for circulating the 1 in 5 number. According to the WSJ article, “After determining that the word "Facebook" appeared in 989 of the company's 5,000 or so most recent divorce petitions, he had Divorce-Online issue a news release in December 2009 stating "Facebook is bad for your marriage”.” The WSJ article again expounds, “Mr. Keenan acknowledges that his company's clients aren't necessarily representative of all divorces, and he adds that his firm never claimed that Facebook actually causes 20% of divorces. "It was a very unscientific survey," Mr. Keenan says.”

    
     There are some major flaws in Lupkin's article, not only does it seem that Lupkin's article is using either unsubstantiated evidence, as well as evidence that may have some validity but is poorly researched and outdated. It is also possible that she is citing a British source. The wall Street journal article claims that the 1-5 number originated from a british based company, if this is true then its possible Lupkin is using information that is not valid for American statistics. Though when doing an internet search of the Divorce Online(Divorce-Online) website, with or without a hyphen, the results lead to what appears to be an American based website, though a uk version of Divorce Online does exist. It is unclear which "Divorce Online" website she is referencing in her article, as she has no links or works cited. When doing a simple search on the Amercian version of Divorce Online none of the statistics or references to back up her claim can be found. This lends itself as further evidence backing up the claim of the Wall Street Journal Article, claiming the 1 in 5 statistic was started by the British company. This clarity issue is a huge drawback to her argument. When doing a simple search on the AAML website as well, I was unable to find any of the evidence or statistics used or the actual articles themselves that Lupkin eludes to. 

       According to the Wall Street Journal article, an American publication, “both the marriage and divorce rate in the U.S. have declined as Internet usage has risen, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.” Though Lupkin did a poor job in identifying reliable sources to back up her claims,  I am still inclined to lean towards the side of the possibility of social networking sites being a catalyst in some cases for breakups and divorce, as I have personal experience. Though the statistics reflect differently the subjective nature of the debate cannot be overlooked or discounted.