Right now on Facebook, you can find around 20 Britney Spears', at least 6 George Bushes, a Barack Obama (which is legit!) and a couple Elvises. But you won't find a profile for Bharrat Jagdeo, the president of Guyana. Why not? Because after learning that an impersonator had created a profile claiming to be him, Jagdeo, the president of the South American nation since 1999, threw a veritable hissy fit, calling the Guyana police in to track down the page's creator. Considering that Jagdeo's phony profile attracted around 170 supporters before it was pulled, and that the page contained no mocking comments, revealing personal information, or doctored photos (the tenets of celebrity impersonations on the Internet), Jagdeo might have even taken the impersonation as a compliment—imitation being the sincerest form of flattery and all. But not so. Instead, the Guyanan leader issued a "terse statement pointing out that he is not, and never has been, a member of Facebook, or any other social networking site," and then instructed the police to start an investigation. Meaning that some teenager with a laptop is currently looking for the quickest flight out of Georgetown. The Internet and politics are now fully intertwined, likely permanently, and it's borderline naive to think that pranks and unauthorized impersonations of political leaders won't occur. Which leads us to the "Can't Beat 'Em So Join 'Em" strategy embraced by Obama (and Shaquille O'Neal, and around 10,000 other bold-face names): If phonies are pretending to be you on Facebook (or Twitter, etc.), create a real profile that outs them as phonies. Your other option? Setting up 24-hour watch on a giant medium that is created and read by billions worldwide—and wasting police time tracking down kids with Internet connections. Related: RB: Obama Would Win Easily…If the Election Were a Web Poll RB: Obama Blogs? President-Elect Launches Web Site, Embraces Internet
Image: Flickr/libraryman
