Hello there,
I'm a journalist from Ireland writing a story about what happens to a person's online presence when they die. I came across this site sometime last year and, like you lot, spent hours going through the profiles of the people listed here. Anyway, I'll be including this place in my article.
I have a few questions for anyone who has a spare minute and I might use answers in the piece. I'll also forward it to Mike for inclusion in the media section.
Right. The questions.
Why do you visit this site? What is it you get from it?
Have any of you taken steps to have your online lives (myspace profiles, youtube accounts, blogs etc) cleaned up in the event that you die? I.e Told a friend or family member to go online and inform people of your death, remove them, given them your passwords etc. Would there be people who you only know online (friends from this forum for example) who might not find out about your death? Would that bother you? Should people who spend a lot of time online come up with a list of online friends who should be informed if they die?
What do you say to the people who think this site is "wrong" or "sick" etc etc?
Would any of you, honestly, mind if one of your own family members was featured on the site? Do you understand when family members react badly?
What do you think about the phenomenon of profiles becoming online shrines? Do you think it helps with the grieving process?
What other sites do you regularly visit?
Thanks very much in advance to anyone who answers.
All the best,
Barry.