As was pointed out in this and other communications courses, social media is incorporated in some form by most organizations and businesses today.
Social media is everywhere and access is even at our fingertips...literally!! What role, if any, do social media play in media literacy?
Social media are forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos). The first known use of social media was in 2004 (Merriam-Webster).
However, Michael Haenlein, an expert on social media says “there seems to be very limited understanding of what the term ‘Social Media’ exactly means....We begin by describing the concept of Social Media, and discuss how it differs from related concepts such as Web 2.0 and User Generated Content. Based on this definition, we then provide a classification of Social Media which groups applications currently subsumed under the generalized term into more specific categories by characteristic: collaborative projects, blogs, content communities, social networking sites, virtual game worlds, and virtual social worlds.” (michaelhaenlein.com)
Blogs and social networking sites are the most used forms of social media today. Facebook has dominated the market with 800million users as at September 2011 and estimates to hit the 1billion mark in August 2012. Twitter is also heavily used.
Social media has become such an integral part of people’s lives that businesses have incorporated it into its operations. Many businesses have Facebook pages and Twitter accounts. They have incorporated the virtual into their business. This benefits the consumer who can now for example, stay at home and view products before going to buy them; or make queries without having to pick up a telephone.
“Blogs, which represent the earliest form of Social Media, are special types of websites that usually display date-stamped entries in reverse chronological order (OECD, 2007). They are the Social Media equivalent of personal web pages and can come in a multitude of different variations, from personal diaries describing the author’s life to summaries of all relevant information in one specific content area. Blogs are usually managed by one person only, but provide the possibility of interaction with others through the addition of comments. Due to their historical roots, text-based blogs are still by far the most common.”(michaelhaenlein.com)
I must say I enjoy my blogging assignments :)
Sources and further readings:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20media
http://michaelhaenlein.com/Publications/Kaplan,%20Andreas%20-%20Users%20of%20the%20world,%20unite.pdf
http://www.michaelhaenlein.eu/
http://mashable.com/2011/01/24/the-history-of-social-media-infographic/
http://mashable.com/2012/01/12/facebook-1-billion-users/
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