Nope, it most likely won’t be televised, but instead will be tweeted, an updated Facebook status, video posted on YouTube or some other form of participatory media widely available for public consumption. In the digital 21st Century, we are constantly looking to the Internet as a primary source for news and information. We have turned away from more traditional sources of news like the 6 o’clock news and daily newspapers and throughout this course we have discussed the consequences of social media on the public sphere. I am optimistic about the way that social media has impacted our lives.
The emergence of blogs I believe has had a positive impact in the way that it gives everyday citizens unprecedented access to be able to publish their own content. Some scholars question whether or not blogging can be seen as journalism, and I would argue that it would not be considered journalism as blogging does contain biases, while the news claims to be ‘neutral’. While blogging is not considered journalism I believe it is important to reveal stories that are different from the stories we read in newspapers and hear about on television. Many stories aren’t reported and only because of social media are these stories exposed. Users can now have an alternative to mainstream media and challenge the events that are reported traditional forms of media. This has allowed for what I believe is an increased feeling of democracy, and it has also allowed for activism to occur by bringing people together. It has allowed one person’s blog post to move from the computer to the streets.
Lastly it is interesting to see the way in which social media has changed our lives. Privacy settings on Facebook and Twitter now can affect the possibility of being hired, or even fired. Users have to watch what they post online because you never know who can access your information. It has also transformed the way we meet people. The rise of social networking sites has changed face-to-face interactions with things like dating sites becoming a main way to meet people and establish connections.
It seems the possibilities are endless with social media, but where will they lead to next, and how much more will they continue to affect our lives? We are living in extremely fast-paced world where technology is emerging so rapidly it is hard to keep up with all the new and innovative ways we can interact with each other. But at the same time, it limits the extent of personal contact we have with people as we find ourselves hiding behind computers more often than actually interacting with people.
While I am positive about some of the aspects social media has on our lives, it is also scary to see how it affects our lives and we become more dependent on Facebook for maintaining personal connections. If you haven’t been on Facebook for over a week, it feels like you’ve lost touch with the world. I also can’t remember how I use to procrastinate five years ago without Facebook. How far will social media go? It will be interesting as Communication Scholars to watch it unfold in the next year, five years, and even the next twenty. We certainly won’t be watching it on the television or reading it in the newspapers though…
Great post!
ReplyDeleteJust to go off your point about where things are headed with social media, the prevailing belief in regards to this is that no technology is ever used the way it was originally planned.
On the topic of social media, Clay Shirky explained that “these tools don’t get socially interesting until they get technologically boring.”
Clearly, it is just getting interesting!