Chatroulette, the niche internet phenomenon that is sweeping the universe (or, at least certain areas in NYC), has become a re-occurring theme these past few weeks for me. It's been popping up in class, in my social circles, and most recently at a birthday party.
So, I am happy to report that I was witness to, and participated in, a grand social experiment last night. At a birthday party for a friend, I saw the community powers of Chatroulette on full display. Apparently, with a willing group of people that were all willing to forgo common decency and etiquette, Chatroulette becomes the party event of the year.
My wife and I were invited to a birthday party for a friend of ours, who happens to be gay. He was the one who originally introduced us to Chatroulette weeks before, and upon arriving at his party, we found about 6 of his friends (also gay) looking at Chatroulette on a large screen tv. One person would be on it at a time, egged on by the others. I mention "gay" not to categorize these individuals in a certain way, but to detail how their sexual orientation played off against some of the people we "met" online. It's not often that you get a control group that is 10-12 gay men, myself, and my wife!
Chatroulette was not a passive movie or tv show, but something that was live and interactive...each person would get about 10 minutes to use it, while we all watched, commented, and yelled out actions or commands. This being a party with already liberal-minded guests, it quickly devolved into how far you could push the Chatroulette strangers. It was immensely entertaining, as interesting social situations were played out right before me:
1. Straight high school or college boys who performed strange, homo-erotic acts towards us...showing their asses and slapping each other's chests, not assuming that the guys they were looking at were indeed gay and getting quite a kick out of it. Once they found out, well...it got awkward for them.
2. Younger girls who wanted to talk to the cute older guys (my friends at the party) until they realized they were gay. At that point, they became kind of amazed by it...or lost interest.
3. The fact that many people are willing to expose themselves sexually within the cloak of anonymity.
4. In the end, it's still a straight, heterosexual male world...and their usual defense mechanism is to call "gay" on anyone who might make them feel the least bit threatened. Ironic when actually confronted with gay individuals.
I'd like to mention point 3 again, because that is the most interesting for me. In an internet populated with Facebook, Twitter, and all sorts of googling of people and their information, there seems to have a new appeal of having anonymity. Chatroulette actually opens up our inhibitions again. For many of us, who realize that our personal lives and thoughts are posted all through social media networks, our inhibitions are being slowly wrapped up even more. As parents and grandparents enter these same worlds, we are shutting down and mellowing out. Chatroulette seems to have opened that door again...
Photo Courtesy of New York Magazine
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