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Words With *Real* Friends

Siapera (2012, p. 194) states that, while traditional models of community are based on shared social and physical boundaries, one of the greatest novelties, and affordances, of online communities is that you can meet like-minded people or express your identity in a non-judging forum, because with the emergence of online communities, the shackles of locality are broken! Kafai, Fields and Searle (2010, p. 10) add to this notion by observing the flexibility and 24/7 availability of virtual worlds. Internet users can basically defy time and space when they belong to virtual communities.

With virtual communities, however, the question is raised as to whether the connections made online are in fact 'real' connections. In my opinion, if there's a human on the other end of the communiqué, I don't see how it's not real just because the conversation, in any form, is being facilitated by technology.

Take this case study, for example: A heartwarming tale of two Words With Friends users, Spencer Sleyon (a rapper from New York) and Rosalind Guttman (Floridan retiree), who were finally united IRL after 300+ games had been played online, from opposite ends of the country.

Source: YouTube

If it weren't for the online platform, I'd bet these two would have never have bonded over a mutual appreciation for alliteration and linguini... I mean linguistics (sorry, I must be hungry). The age gap and racial and cultural differences, not to mention the thousand miles between them, made the pair an unlikely set of friends, however Sleyon vouched for the authenticity of their connection, stating they would converse about personal things including politics, the election and natural disasters, and Sleyon considered Guttman to be his "best friend". I’d say, there aint nothin’ fake about that kind of friendship!

References:

Kafai, YB, Fields, D & Searle, KA 2010, 'Multi-Modal investigations of relationship Play in Virtual Worlds', International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 40-48.

Siapera, E 2012, ‘Socialities and Social Media’, in Understanding New Media,  Sage, London, pp. 191-208.

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Curate Your Self(ie)

danah boyd (Alhadeff 2014) talks about how important it is for us, but especially young teenagers, who are existing in such a technologically reliant age, to be able to have agency over our self-image. It can be an incredibly empowering thing, one that I don't think should be taken for granted or trivialised. Like Jurman says in an online interview (Farman 2014), audience is the key to social content these days, not the actual piece of media being produced. He notes that the roles have been flipped, so that instead of the main outcome of a photo being a print of that photo, that you then put in a little album and show to people while you're (likely) hovering over their shoulder, we are now seeking the reaction and validation that comes after the photo is shared (instantly) with your (sometimes) massive audience (Farman 2014).

Lange (p. 70, 2009) writes about 'videos of affinity' on YouTube, recognising that they aren't so much a video diary as they are a video log (or vlog) targeted at a community of people, who wish to participate and remain socially connected to the video maker. I have quite a bit of respect for (some) vloggers and YouTubers. I think it takes great courage to put your face out there, and show (often quite personal and intimate) snippets of your day-to-day life with random people on the internet. I always wonder how much of the content is curated, or at least, to what extent is it curated?

Take Hannah Gadsby, for example. She's a brilliant comedian who began a (very tongue in cheek) social media plight to be Ruby Rose's understudy during the run of Orange is the New Black, season 3. She started recreating Rose's social media snaps, then realised there were actually some real, albeit comedic, parallels with her own photos. 

Source: Buzzfeed

Source: Buzzfeed

Source: Buzzfeed

One point Gadsby makes that drives the whole 'curate your self image' notion for me, is that different people are given different affordances with how they have to present themselves on social media. I guess these affordances can be subverted, but inevitably there will be a cost, whether it be social currency, or real currency (due to your marketability being affected).

Is this fair?

References

Alhadeff, E 2014, The kids are (still) alright, Microsoft, viewed 5 February 2018, .

Farman, J 2014, Photography, Self Documentation, & Social Media: An Interview with Nathan Jurgenson, 16 June, viewed 5 February 2018, .

Lange, P 2009, ‘Videos of Affinity on YouTube’, in P, Snickars & P, Vonderau (eds), The YouTube Reader, National Library of Sweden, Stockholm, pp. 70-88.

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Ahh this post gave me all the feels! I miss the good old days when we’d just huddle around the console (in our case, we had to because the cords didn’t reach the couch lol). Interesting that you raise the point that increased affordances, and the accentuation of players losing at the expense of others, creates a toxic gaming environment. I’d have to agree, but in saying that, I remember a control or two being thrown during tantrums after a particularly close and competitive loss during Mario Kart

Social gaming: How Complexity changes communities

As a kid, Social gaming was sitting around the TV with your school mates racing each other on the shores of Koopa Troopa Beach, daring each other to try and make that shortcut.

Koopa Troopa Beach - Mario Kart 64

These days the idea of social gaming means something on a completely different level. We hardly game alone.

Way back in week two, we touched on the ideas of Community and Society. Community, According to Tonnies (cited in Siapera 2012), is based on the natural will to be with others for a self-fulfilling purpose such as families and neighbourhoods with close-knit relationships. Society on the other hand is goal orientated relationship that stems for rational will and include citizenship and private companies (Siapera 2012).

Online Games serve an obvious recreational function, therefore these are self-fulfilling communities. These kinds of communities foster strong Social capital where users in these gaming communities interact with other users sharing similar interest like genres and role playing. Users benefit from this community as they can offer each other assistance in game quests and contribution to the creation of a more organic and believable virtual world.

Mario kart on 64 was a pretty straight forward game. You go on green and high tail it to the finish on each course of the cup, have a winner declared and demand a second (or more) rematches if you lost. The Games that are a part of the online ear however offer their communities a mind boggling range of affordances. And with these more complex games playing wit mostly anonymous players, the chances of toxic communities developing.

Game Introspection (2018) tries to pull this idea apart by taking a look at factors like time investment, culture, and trust of other users. When we deal with complex tasks, we have less self-control and less trust when dealing with others, especially in an anonymous setting (GameIntrospection 2018). League of legends is a strong example of how a complex game with high time investment and complexities can result in a toxic online community.

The complexity of League of Legends  

“It is pretty wide-spread knowledge that the League of Legends community toxic to play in. Not knowing the current meta-game, criticizing every move that you make, from decisions on when you walk through the brush to when you use your skills to making one bad play. People look for any excuse possible to blame others for how the match doesn’t go their way.” 

- Game Introspection (2018)

Users discussing toxic game cultures on reddit seem to agree:

So it could be argued that the more affordances, means more time investment and ultimately, more complexity. Perhaps games that rely on strong online communities need to find a balance of these factors to avoid the community breakdowns and toxicity?

I for one have recently got my hands on to Mario 64, and look forward to the straight forward competition in my living room.

Good old simple gaming

References

GameIntrospection 2018, “Bias in Gaming – Complexity and Toxic Communities – A Small Case Study from League of Legends and Overwatch”, GameIntrospection, viewed 29 January, 2018, <https://gameintrospection.com/2016/06/30/bias-in-gaming-complexity-and-toxic-communities-a-small-case-study-from-league-of-legends-and-overwatch/>.

Reddit, 2018, “Gamers, what is the best (or worst) online gaming community right now? • r/AskReddit”, reddit, viewed 29 January, 2018, <https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/669zfj/gamers_what_is_the_best_or_worst_online_gaming/>.

Siapera, E 2012, ‘Socialities and Social Media’, in Understanding New Media, Sage, London, pp. 191-208.

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Hey Mitch,

Another really interesting case study, thanks for the great read!

I saw that you liked my White Moose Cafe example for social media conflicts, how funny is the fake press release?  :D

I find it pretty unnerving to think of how quickly the mob mentality can take over on social media, horrible to think that Sacco received death threats! Her joke was pretty tasteless but certainly not deserving of that level of hate, in my opinion. Darby got the same kind of hate with people harassing her and calling her a leecher, but then it escalated and she reportedly received six hours worth of abusive messages including “death threats and cancer wishes”. Crazy stuff!

Cheers

Izzy

And then came the trolls: Social media conflict and trolling

In The above Ted talk, Author Jon Ronson (2015) takes the audience back to a more optimistic time. How twitter gave Voiceless a voice.

‘it was powerful and eloquent.’

Ronson (2015) then goes to tell a story about Justine Sacco, a PR woman from New York. He tells of Justine sending a harmless joke tweet before a flight to her small number of 170 followers on twitter.

  When she arrives to her destination however, she realises her tweet had been picked up by a Gawker Journalist and her joke had been taken out of context and was the top trending topic on twitter.

The back lash then began to spiral out of control.

First there were the philanthropists:

Then it got darker:

And then came the trolls:

Ronson explains that these people never were attacked for crossing these lines, that this mob mentality took over.

This case of Justine Sacco’s tweet highlights just how intense and quickly this mob mentality can take hold and effects someone’s life in a very real way. Therefore, understanding trolls in out digital communities is a powerful force that needs to be understood.

According to (McCosker 2014), trolling needs to be understood as the starting point understanding the place of provocation in its multiple, highly contextualised and always changing forms. However there are many ways to look at trolling. Some definitions as described by Donath (1999) refer to trolling as a form of deception and manipulation, with the intent of humour. Others call it out for it more darker attributes where someone who is being trolled means they are a victim and made to be the butt of someone else’s joke (Bergstrom 2011).

Ronson explaines that digital communites like twitter are like mutal approval machines. It creates an environment where users can identify as compassionate good people by joinging a cause, which sometimes leads them to commit profoundly un-compassionate acts.

Afte Hearing this story of Justine Sacco’s tweet, it shows how quickly this mob mentality in our digital communities can corrupt and change how we treat each other.

 References:

Bergstrom, K 2011, ‘“Don’t Feed the Troll”: Shutting down the debate about community expectations on Reddit.com’, First Monday vol. 16, no. 8, viewed 3 August 2016, <http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/3498/3029>.

Donath JS 1999, ‘Identity and deception in the virtual community’, in MA, Smith & P, Kollock (eds), Communities in Cyberspace, Routledge, London,  pp. 27-58.

McCosker, A 2014, YouTrolling as provocation: Tube’s agonistics publics, Convergence, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 201-217.

Ronson, J., 2018. When online shaming goes too far. [online] Ted.com. Available at: https://www.ted.com/talks/jon_ronson_what_happens_when_online_shaming_spirals_out_of_control [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

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hey Mitch!

Really enjoyed how you analysed Jurgenson’s ‘social media’ eye theory! I found myself doing something similar when I started utilising the bookstagram hashtag to try and build my author’s account...I got a little obsessed at one stage and couldn’t even enjoy a hot cup of coffee because every time I’d make one to settle down to read with, my #bookstagram instincts would take over and I’d have to take the perfect picture of my coffee mug and book to post before I could actually relax...

Social Photos: where the object is irrelevant.

Ok. I have a confession to make. I’m not a huge user of social media.

Ok. Well I use it. But I’m a “lurker”. I check the feed and scroll past the familiar and no so familiar faces of people I’ve added for a few minutes before I get bored. I hardly ever contribute to the infinite number of image content on the social media sphere. So, I’m probably the worst person to ask why people post photos of their daily lives on social media for all the world to see. However, watching the interview with Nathan Jurgenson (2014) gave a great insight as to what happened with our worlds idea of the ‘photo’.

When I do scroll through Instagram, most of the post I do see are of foodporn or of a similar nature. Why? Well this self-confessed social media ‘lurker’, ironically enough, worked a few months as a social media intern for major Melbourne restaurants. So not only did I take photos of burgers on a roof top bar or an Aperol spritz by the water, I had to stay in loop with the trends other accounts were on and follow many, many food bloggers and businesses. In Jurgenson’s interview, he talks about how the parallels between the analog photography culture and our current digital one. And its interesting to think about my experiences in the social media gig in the ideas of the ‘social photo’.

Social photos in Jurgenson’s (Farman 2014) definition are photos that are taken for social networks in mind. These photos have one prime purpose. To communicate a message. He talks about how one of the best ways to understand our changed photo culture is by focusing on the end and the means. He describes that the ‘ends’ and the ‘means’ have switched (Farman 2014). For the Traditional photography, the ends was the photograph and the means was the content. However now, especially with ‘social photos’, the ends is the communication of the message and the object is irrelevant (Farman 2014). Social media photos are there to solely communicate a message.

This point is extremely relevant when It came to me going out to a bar and taking a photo to place on the Instagram page. I would select the meals and drinks that are trendy/ needed promotion set them up in a pleasing way and take some snaps. However, (most of) the beer would be thrown out because I needed to drive, and the food would be left to waste. Why? Because in a social media world, communication is the ends and the object, the photo, the beer, is irrelevant.

References:

Jason Farman 2014, Photography, Self Documentation, & Social Media: An Interview with Nathan Jurgenson, 16 June, viewed 3 August 2016, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnPtZ5lKDHo>.

n.d. 2018, “Testing Screen-Based Menus For Restaurants | Blue Kite Insight”, Blue Kite, viewed 25 January, 2018, <https://bluekiteinsight.com/blog/foodporn-the-good-the-bad-the-ugly/>.

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Hey Andrew,

Another great read!

Your case study of Barber trying to subvert the instagram fashionista trop reminds me of when comedian Hannah Gadsby did something similar in ‘recreating’ photos from Ruby Rose’s instagram. Her approach was to draw attention to funny little parallels that she didn't even realise were there, initially, but as the ‘project’ went on, she started to realise the differences in their accounts. Perhaps due to being a comedian, she was allowed to post a ridiculous looking picture, whereas Rose was almost obligated by this unspoken societal pressure to ‘nail’ the photo every single time.

Cheers

Izzy

Networked visuality - are we all narcissists now?

Source: Create Meme

Why are selfies so popular? What is it about photographing ourselves and posting the results on social media so addictive? Who even wants to see them?

According to Tifentale (2014), we don’t post them for our own benefit - for our own ‘consumption and contemplation’, rather it is to ‘express our belonging to a community - or a wish to belong to one.’ So, thanks to this community - or network - posting a selfie is ‘at once a private and individual and also a communal and public activity’ (Tifentale 2014).

Photo source: Belch Buzz

Modern day technology such as Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat facilitate widespread and immediate sharing of these self-portraits to our networks, coupled with the ubiquity of internet-enabled smartphones (16.7 million in Australia (2017) Source: Statista).

Of course, self-portraits are certainly not a new phenomenon. Artists have been painting themselves for centuries. What has changed, according to Hart (2014) is how others engage with these images. We’re encouraged to ‘like’ the selfies of our friends and others in our communities, as a sign we approve of them. This is where the potential narcissism creeps in, as we respond to other’s approval or otherwise of our image. ‘We’ve become a generation that is as driven by attention as any other has been by money. We hustle harder and focus more on who cares, rather than what truly matters’ (D’Ambrosio 2017).

“Glamour cannot exist without personal social envy being a common and widespread emotion.” - John Berger - Ways of Seeing (1972)

Hart (2014) mentions an alarming rise in cosmetic surgery procedures for patients under 30, and suggests that ‘Generation Y sees cosmetic surgery as ‘physical Photoshop’. However, even the aforementioned artists were known to embellish their appearance to present themselves in the most flattering light. Hudson (2014) comments that ‘from the late 15th century artists were manipulating their self-images, making themselves appear older or younger to suit their purposes, taking on fictional and biblical roles to heighten their brand profiles’. Sounds familiar… although rather than attempting to resemble biblical characters, today, the celebrity lifestyle is the aspirational goal for many social media users.

Pliskin (2014) labels Gen Y’s obsession with celebrity as it’s ‘defining characteristic’. Rather than simply observing that it’s a need for distraction however, Pliskin notes that the real reason is that ‘most of us desire fame, in one form or another’. Coming back to social media, Pliskin says that it allows us “to experience something eerily akin to fame. They give us a captive audience. They feed our egos by incessantly assuring us that someone is listening, that someone cares. This is what it is to be famous.”

One Instagram user who tries to subvert this obsession is Celeste Barber. An Australian actor and comedian, Barber entertains her 2.8 million followers with her regular ‘real-life re-enactments�� of celebrity fashion images (Spring 2017).

Source: Instagram - Celeste Barber

While not intending to set herself up as a media commentator, she does like the fact that her work resonates at a deeper level. Of celebrities, Barber says “I get a little miffed with fashionista people thinking that they are much better than other people because they are very slim and have architect husbands and get to wear free stuff. It’s a bit [like they are] rubbing your nose in, ‘This is how we live, sorry guys” (Spring 2017). In her parodies, Barber is trying to bring a little reality back to social media, and that seems to really resonate with her audience as can be seen by the size of her network.

“I never started out for it to be a body positive thing… It was always like, this is how celebrities get out of the pools [and] I’m like no, this is how you get out of the pool.”

Source: Instagram - Celeste Barber

References:

D’Ambrosio, A 2016, Celebrity Status: 3 Reasons Our Generation’s Obsession with Attention is Ruining Everything, Huff Post, viewed 19 January 2018, <https://www.huffingtonpost.com/anthonydambrosio/celebrity-status-3-reason_b_9850190.html>.

Hart, A 2014, Generation selfie: Has posing, pouting and posting turned us all into narcissists?, The Telegraph, viewed 19 January 2018, <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11265022/Selfie-obsession-are-we-the-most-narcissistic-generation-ever.html>.

Hudson, M 2014, The Self-Portrait: a Cultural History by James Hall, review, The Telegraph, viewed 19 January 2018, <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/10726910/The-Self-Portrait-a-Cultural-History-by-James-Hall-review.html>.

Pliskin, A 2014, Why This Generation Is So Completely Obsessed With The Idea Of Celebrity, Elite Daily, viewed 19 January 2014, <https://www.elitedaily.com/life/generation-y-obsessed-celebrity/644403>.

Spring, A 2017, Celeste Barber: ‘I get miffed with fashionistas thinking they are better than others’, The Guardian, viewed 19 January 2018, <https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/jun/30/celeste-barber-i-get-miffed-with-fashionistas-thinking-they-are-better-than-others>.

Statista 2018, Number of smartphone users in Australia from 2015 to 2022, Statista, viewed 19 January 2018, <https://www.statista.com/statistics/467753/forecast-of-smartphone-users-in-australia/>.

Tifentale, A 2014, The Selfie: Making sense of the “Masturbation of Self-Image” and the “Virtual Mini-Me”, The Graduate Center, The City University of New York.

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Hey Benji,

Great topical example with the #metoo movement that was started by activist Tarana Burke in 2006. You’re right though, it picked up momentum when Milano encouraged others to post ‘me too’ in solidarity with McGowan. Reading Uma Thurman’s recent statement gives me hope that times-are-a-changing, however it’s going to take time to see whether any progress will really be made to revolutionise such a massive and powerful industry.

Cheers,

Izzy

Activism and Protest

It’s Week 6 and we are half way through the unit – yay! In this week, we as a group looked at Activism and Protest through the digital realm #KeyboardWarrior!

 “Digital Activism also known as cyberactivism, is a form of activism that uses the Internet and digital media as key platforms for mass mobilization and political action” (Britannica 2018). Digital activism has transformed political protest since birth the of world wide web. The combination of the internet and smartphones have changed the way political events, protests and movements are organised, helping to mobilise hundreds of thousands of new supporters to a diverse range of causes.

 A recent and excellent example of this new age protest is the hashtag that rocked the world - #Metoo. What started with Alyssa Milano’s online call after the Harvey Weinstein revelations became a conversation about men’s behaviour towards women and power imbalances. “Facebook noted that within 24 hours, 4.7 million people around the world engaged in the #Metoo conversation, with over 12million posts, comments and reactions” (Khomami 2017). This simple hashtag has gone from a social campaign to a cry for social change, with several high-profile men under investigation or sacked from their positions due to these explosive allegations. While this movement currently has a lot of momentum behind it, some are speculating whether or not #Metoo will translate into literal action. As LaMotte (2017) notes, this isn’t the first time a hashtag has caused a lot of fuss, over the years we’ve had #ItsNotOkay, #YesAllWomen, #WhyIStayed etc which have all ended up in the viral graveyard. Some people argue that the media is to blame with lack of attention, others point to the term “Slacktivism” which is a conjunction of “Slacker” and “Activism” basically meaning someone who want to feel good about themselves and react to online movements but don’t actually do anything about it in the real world.

 From “Slacktivism” to “Hacktivism” and even “Leaktivism” as Karatzogianni (2016) notes, are all new terms of digital activism. So, called Hacktivist organisation such as “Anonymous” regularly attack computer networks of the rich and powerful and even terrorist organisations such as the Islamic State in order to expose classified information to the rest of the world also known as “leaktivism” example would include the Panama Paper, WikiLeaks and Edward Snowden.

Instead of taking it to the streets, I suppose these days it’s - take it to the web!

Reference: 

Britannica, 2018, “Digital Activism” Encyclopaedia Britannica, viewed 30th January 18 < https://www.britannica.com/topic/digital-activism>

Karatzogianni, A 2016, “Beyond Hashtags: how a new wave of digital activists is changing society” The Conversation, viewed 30th January 18

< https://theconversation.com/beyond-hashtags-how-a-new-wave-of-digital-activists-is-changing-society-57502>

 Khomami, N 2017, “#Metoo: How a hashtag became a rallying cry against sexual harassment” The Guardian, viewed 30th January 18

< https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/20/women-worldwide-use-hashtag-metoo-against-sexual-harassment>

 LaMotte, S 2017, “How #Metoo could move from social campaign to social change” CNN Edition, viewed 30th January 18

< https://edition.cnn.com/2017/10/30/health/metoo-legacy/index.html>

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Hey!

Really liked your Farm Project tv example that utilises a bit of humour to help educate and entertain the audience :) reminded me a bit of this Soda Stream ad:

Similarly it uses comedy to grab people’s attention. Like you say, likes and posts dont save lives or the environment, but humour is a great way to get a message to circulate, go viral, and make an impression in my opinion.

Cheers,

Izzy

Social Change via Social Media (BP4)

One of the perks of social media is that everything has the potential to “go viral”. Activists and others who desire social change have taken to their keyboards (and digital cameras) to spread their message, with the hope that their content will be seen by the world. The ease at which content can be shared on social media websites has led to a rise in slacktivism, which is defined as “a willingness to perform a relatively costless, token display of support for a social cause, with an accompanying lack of willingness to devote significant effort to enact meaningful change” (Kristofferson et al. 2014, p. 1149).

When defined in this manner, the concept of slacktivism is not a new one. I remember selling Daffodil Day (Cancer Council) merchandise in high school, and every year around Remembrance Day you can buy poppies. These small tokens can be purchased cheaply and don’t require the purchaser to put in any additional effort other than stopping and reaching for their loose change. Social media has really revamped the concept of slacktivism, and it now costs people almost nothing to hit Like or Share on a Facebook post and this content will be broadcast to all their Facebook friends.

Does slacktivism work? Karen Skinner, the Australian Director of the Change.org website, claims that it does (Gillespie 2016). There have been a number of online petitions created on Change.org which have actually managed to achieve social change, such as one calling for medical cannabis reform, and another calling for education about domestic violence for school students. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find statistics which compared the success and failure rates of Change.org petitions (unsurprisingly the Change.org website only talks about the successful ones!), but I would imagine that for every successful one, there are countless others that fail.

Social media is a useful tool for spreading the word about social and world issues, both by gaining the attention of people previously unaware about the issue, and also solidifying support from existing sympathisers. Technology also allows different kinds of content to be shared, and by attaching a celebrity to the message such as The Farm Project’s video included below (The Farm Project 2017), the message is guaranteed to be seen by a wider audience (this particular video had 28 million views and has only been online for 3 weeks!).

The majority of successful acts of activism still require people to leave their homes to make their voices heard (McCafferty 2011). Social media can play an important role for these acts by allowing interested parties to communicate and coordinate (Gerbaudo 2012), and it can also provide visibility of the group’s actions to those who are outside the geographical area or otherwise unable or unwilling to attend in person.  

It’s important to remember that just getting people to click Like or Share is not really the end goal for activists. What they’re really after is people to donate or join their cause. UNICEF Sweden produced this video Likes Don’t Save Lives to draw attention to the need for people to take actual action.

References 

Gerbaudo, P 2012, Tweets and the Streets: Social Media and Contemporary Activism, Pluto Press, London.

Gillespie, K 2016, The Director of Change.org Australia Explains How Slacktivism Is a Myth, Vice, viewed 1 January 2018, <https://www.vice.com/en_au/article/bnkdad/the-director-of-changeorg-australia-about-medicinal-cannabis-gay-panic-and-the-myth-of-slacktivism>.

Kristofferson, K, White, K, Peloza, J 2014, ‘The Nature of Slacktivism: How the Social Observability of an Initial Act of Token Support Affects Subsequent Prosocial Action’, Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 40, no. 6, pp. 1149-1166.

McCafferty, D 2011, ‘Activism vs. Slacktivism’, Communications of the ACM, vol. 54, no. 12, pp. 17-19.

The Farm Project 2017, Plastic Bottle Addiction, 11 December, viewed 1 January 2018, <https://www.facebook.com/thefarmproject/videos/1588594141176039/>.

UNICEF Sverige 2014, Likes Don’t Save Lives, April 23, viewed 1 January 2018, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_M0SDk3ZaM>. 

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Hey Benji,

Cheers for the Game Show entertainment! I was actually going down the list thinking, ‘oh god, he can’t have said that, too!’ and yet he did...

Thanks for providing a neat summary of the different ways in which politicians use social media. I’m of the mindset that if you’re using it for professional reasons, you should be professional about it! Clearly Trump’s on another wave of thought though: 

Politics and Civic Cultures

Okay before we begin I want to play a game of “Who Said that?” Politics and social media edition 2018! Where I’ll read out some tweets and you can guess who it might be.

1.     “I have never seen a thin person drinking Diet Coke”. 

2.     “Arianna Huffingpost is unattractive both inside and out. I finally understand why her former husband left her for a man – he made a good decision”

3.     “The Media is spending more time doing a forensic analysis of Melania’s speech than the FBI spent on Hillary’s emails

4.     “Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest -and you all know it! Please don’t feel so stupid or insecure, it’s not your fault”

5.     “Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at U.N. If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won’t be around much longer!”

6.     Haiti, El Salvador and parts of Africa are all shithole countries

That’s correct these are quotes from the 45th and current President of the United States, the man of the hour Donald Trump! In week 5 we looked at the ever-growing relationship between Politician’s and social media and the effectiveness of these platforms when used as part of a political campaign. Can you name a more iconic politician who goes hand in hand with social media then Trump and his twitter account? “Facebook and Twitter were the reason we won this thing” (Lapowsky 2016) a quote from Trumps digital director Brad Parscale on how they won the election, shows just how powerful social media as a tool can be in the 21st century.

 As Murse (2017) notes, the prevalence of social media in politics has made elected officials and candidates more accountable and accessible to voters, and he’s right, in real time 24/7, if you want to voice your opinion to Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull feel free to send him a tweet @TurnbullMalcom while you’re there you may as well say hello to @JulieBishopMP or even former US president @BarackObama. It’s becoming increasingly easy for voters to interact with politicians elect, and vice versa, they have “the ability to publish content and broadcast it to millions of people instantaneously allowing campaigns to carefully manage their candidates image” (Murse 2027) all at the click of a few buttons. Carrying on from this idea of campaigning using social media, if we cast our gaze back to the 2016 US political campaign (I know, I’m sorry we had to go back #GrabHerByThePussy) “Facebook proved to be a powerful way for Trump’s team to hone the campaign’s message with the enormous sample sizes you can’t get with traditional polling” (Lapowsky 2016). Meaning Trump had the advantage of a platform where we as the audience are already conditioned to click, comment, share, which in doing so created feedback so he could figure out what works and what doesn’t.

Ultimately social media isn’t going anywhere fast, so if anything, we can probably expect to see a rise in political activity on Facebook and Twitter, as they pretend to be “real” and post selfies out and about to sway over potential voters for upcoming elections.

Let the digital games begin!

Reference: 

Murse, T 2017, “How social media has changed politics” ThoughtCo, viewed 28th January 18< https://www.thoughtco.com/how-social-media-has-changed-politics-3367534

 Lapowsky, I 2016, “Here’s how Facebook actually won Trump the Presidency” WIRED, viewed 28th January 18 < https://www.wired.com/2016/11/facebook-won-trump-election-not-just-fake-news/>

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Hey Andrew,

Great post! Love the quote at the start, really gives you some food for thought...and it’s a scary thought at that! In my blog on this topic I touched on how social media and networking media affords everyday citizens a level of democratisation, as far as political content goes. What are your thoughts on whether social media opens up these discussion channels? Keeping in mind we have filter bubbles and Facebook algorithms working against us, I like your point that ‘viral news needs the blood stream of broader media to carry it from one silo to another’, however I’m of the opinion that with more transparency and education, social media will be able to overcome the reliance on broader (and usually biased) media conglomerates and will hopefully be able to provide less filtered discourse in the near future! But maybe I’m just being optimistic!

Cheers,

Izzy 

How much political influence does social media really have?

When asked what brought him the most pleasure in all the different aspects of his business, Rupert Murdoch replied ‘being involved … in a [political] campaign - trying to influence people’ (McKnight 2013).

Murdoch takes his role as a political influencer very seriously and his media empire spans the globe across print, television and online environments. His favour is sought by politicians and aspiring leaders in the hope that he will write positive things about them, and his print dominance in many markets can be shown to have actually influenced election results (McKnight 2013). But in light of the statistic that in 2017, two-thirds of American adults now get their news not from newspapers or broadcast news, but from social media (Pew Research Center 2017), will his influence be maintained in the future?

Scratching backs. Image Source: NY Mag

Given that the top three most visited news websites in the US are more centre-left leaning politically (CNN, New York Times & Huffington Post) (Feedspot 2017), one could assume that users social media feeds (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) would more be more heavily populated by news that is opposed to the Murdoch ideology. Social media, however, works by friends sharing information that appeals to them - not to mention ‘organisations or politicians who are paying Facebook for their attention’ (Phillips 2016). Enter ‘filter bubbles’. First described by Eli Pariser in his 2011 book about the topic, filter bubbles are media we are exposed to that only reinforce our own opinions, excluding other views. According to Bill Gates, social media ‘lets you go off with like-minded people, so you’re not mixing and sharing and understanding other points of view’ (Gates in Delaney 2017).

Video Source: Quartz Media

Politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn (the British Labour leader) and Bernie Sanders in the US capitalised on their younger audiences consuming their news primarily from social media. While attracting little press attention - Sanders received less than a third of the media attention as Hillary Clinton (Phillips 2016) - their Facebook and other social media mentions vastly outnumbered their opponents. Despite this coverage however, most of the time, thanks to filter bubbles, stories about them were only being seen by audiences who shared the same viewpoint. For those who have a different social media profile to Sanders supporters, their news feeds could well be silent about what he had to say. As we know, both of these men built impressive followings, but were not able to capitalise on it and claim victory. Phillips (2016) notes that ‘social media provides a mobilising force that builds passionate partisanship’. In other words, it does not generally cross over partisan lines. She goes on to say that ‘viral news needs the blood stream of broader media to carry it from one silo to another’. 

With this in mind, perhaps Rupert Murdoch’s days of influence aren’t over yet?

References

Delaney, K 2017, Filter bubbles are a serious problem with news, says Bill Gates, Quartz Media, viewed 5 January 2018, <https://qz.com/913114/bill-gates-says-filter-bubbles-are-a-serious-problem-with-news/>.

Feedspot 2017, Top 100 USA News Websites on the Web, viewed 5 January 2018, <https://blog.feedspot.com/usa_news_websites >.

McKnight, D 2013, Murdoch and his influence on Australian political life, The Conversation, viewed 5 January 2018, <https://theconversation.com/murdoch-and-his-influence-on-australian-political-life-16752>.

Pew Research Center 2017, News Use Across Social Media Platforms 2017, viewed 5 January 2018, <http://www.journalism.org/2017/09/07/news-use-across-social-media-platforms-2017/>.

Phillips, A 2016, Social media is changing the face of politics – and it’s not good news, The Conversation, viewed 5 January 2018, <https://theconversation.com/social-media-is-changing-the-face-of-politics-and-its-not-good-news-54266>.

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#bloggergate: is the troll always the villain in social media conflict?

Thanks to social media platforms and mobile media technologies, we now have more access to public communication, and more capacity to contribute to these discussions, than ever before (Swinburne Online 2017). danah boyd (2014, p. 149) recognises that our use of social media has shifted the perception of 'celebrity' in recent years: it's no longer exclusive, but something you can gain yourself by harnessing the networking capabilities of new technologies. So, naturally, we've seen a massive growth in self-promotion and the rise of the internet influencer.

Source: Elle Darby Instagram

Word of mouth marketing is a process where people, instead of marketers or traditional advertising avenues, influence the actions or attitudes of others (as they are deemed more trustworthy and honest), and by using technology to enhance this process (spreading the message quicker and more efficiently than was possible with traditional media), internet influencers have become an incredibly effective marketing tool (Mohr 2017, p. 10). With greater use of these platforms come new norms and responsibilities, but they also bring about possible misuses, new forms of conflict and potential harm (Swinburne Online 2017).

The term 'troll' has become heavily associated with internet discourse, with some defining trolling as provocation in a highly contextualised internet environment (McCosker 2014, p. 202), and others describing it as "a form of deception and manipulation, often in jest and for the tacit fun of community members" (Donath 1999). One example of an internet troll can be seen in the recent conflict between Paul V Stenson, owner of The White Moose Café, and Elle Darby, an influencer who requested free accommodation in exchange for a shoutout on her socials. Here's Darby's request that Stenson shared on The White Moose Cafe page along with his reply:

Source: The White Moose Cafe Facebook

Reportedly, Stenston didn't realise Darby's details could be extracted from his edited screenshot of her emails, which prompted internet users to hassle and shame Darby on her social media accounts. Darby responded to, and confirmed, the conflict with a YouTube video:

Source: YouTube

And Stenson replied with a heavily sarcastic 'press conference' to address the drama:

Source: YouTube

While it's easy to sympathise with Darby, a young woman trying to expand her business and live her dreams, it's also easy to view Stenson, a bona fide internet troll, in a somewhat heroic light. He issued another statement on Facebook, banning all bloggers from his establishment and highlighting the nature of entitlement in the bloggersphere:

However problematic internet trolls are (keeping in mind, some do far more harm than others), when they use their tactics to 'troll up' and stand up to homogenisation and unchallenged norms, they "keep open the possibility of the internet as a zone of freedom" (Wilson, Fuller & McCrea 2014), which is ultimately a good thing, don’t you think?

References:

boyd, d 2014, 'Bullying: Is the Media Amplifying Meanness and Cruelty?', in It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, Yale University Press, New Haven, USA, pp. 128-52.

Jackson, G & Ahuja, V 2016, 'Dawn of the digital age and the evolution of the marketing mix', Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 170-186.

McCosker, A 2014, ‘YouTrolling as provocation: Tube's agonistics publics’, Convergence, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 201-217.

Mohr, I 2017, 'Managing Buzz Marketing in the Digital Age', Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, vol. 11, no. 2, pp.10-16.

Swinburne Online 2017, 'Module 7.2: Trolling and provocation', on Canvas in MDA20009 Digital Communities, Teaching Period 3, viewed 2 February 2018, .

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Protest in the Age of Facebook

Source: Wired

What makes the initial Women's March, held on January 21, 2017, so incredibly astounding was not so much the sheer size of the demonstration, or the ineffable rationale behind the protest, but more so the grassroots nature of the movement, which began hours after the election when Teresa Shook, a retired attorney from Hawaii, created a Facebook event (Nicolini & Hansen 2017, p. 1). The tremendous response to Shook's event was unexpected to say the least, with over 10,000 people signing up in the first 12 hours, international and experienced activist groups joining the cause, and approximately half a million people marching in Washington DC on the day after Donald Trump's Inauguration (Lapowski 2017).

Source: Wired

Gerbaudo (2012, p. 4) describes how social media is the equivalent of what the leaflet, newspaper, or poster used to be for rallying activists, starting movements, and choreographing collective action. The added benefits of these new media is that messages can now be spread without geographical restrictions, so that communities can be built and sustained in a timely and cost effective manner (Swinburne Online 2017). 

Source: Wired

In Shook's case, she was able to mobolise a massive, worldwide movement (there were Women's Marches held in many major international cities) by harnessing the networking affordances of Facebook and by tapping into the common rage that marginalised citizens felt when faced with Trump's looming presidency. Lapowski (2017) recalls the most memorable poster she saw while marching amid the sea of pink pussyhats and vagina signs - one that read: "Too many demands to fit on one poster." The Women’s March wasn’t simply about Trump: it sought to amplify the voices of all minorities, whether it be based on gender, sexuality, religion, race or ethnicity. It was pro-science, anti-misogynist, inclusive and empowering. For Lapowski (2017) that sign served as a reminder that the march was much like Facebook: a sprawling, diverse, and ubiquitous town square welcoming all races, religions, and nationalities.

References:

Gerbaudo, P 2012, 'Tweets and the Streets', in Tweets and the Streets: Social Media and Contemporary Activism, Pluto, London.

Lapowski, I 2017, The Women’s March Defines Protest in the Facebook Age, Wired, viewed 2 February 2018, .

Nicolini, KM & Hansen, SS 2017, 'Framing the Women’s March on Washington: Media coverage and organizational messaging alignment', Public Relations Review, pp. 1-10.

Swinburne Online 2017, 'Module 6.2 Local digital activism', on Canvas in MDA20009 Digital Communities, Teaching Period 3, viewed 1 February 2018, .

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Playground Politics

Social media cops a lot of flack for dumbing us all down, especially when it comes to important things, like political discourse. Jodi Dean (DCU School of Communication 2013) raises concerns that while we assume these modern networking technologies allow liberating political participation for civilians, the means and outcome of this communication is not as productive as we may think. Dean (2013) uses the word "clicktivism" to describe the act of online activism, or more particularly, the enthusiasm that is generated and augmented with circulating political or social-minded content on social media, however, most of the time this content doesn't actually illicit action, it just encourages more circulation.

Source: Aphelis

Gladwell (Jericho 2013, p. 256) makes a great point in saying, "real activism requires real connections — connections that need to be offline", however Jericho also acknowledges the (very real) power social media have in connecting people who want to garner change. The late 90's saw a shift in the way we use the Internet, and since the beginning of web 2.0 we've seen a massive emergence of participatory and user-generated media circulating the web (Lee 2013, p. 398). This new participatory model of the internet can be seen as a sort of democratisation tool that levels the playing field. Ordinary citizens can now contact celebrities or politicians directly through Facebook or Twitter, bloggers and creators can weigh in on political debates through various networking platforms, and, most importantly, the viral nature of social media can be harnessed to pursue greater civic participation and education in political matters.

"Researchers in the US have generally found that exposure to political comedy programs, many of which employed satire extensively, could lead to higher levels of political engagement, especially among people with low levels of political interests." 

- (Lee 2013, p. 398)

Brasset (2016, p. 170) describes how comedy, particularly satire, has historically always been a form of vernacular resistance against political structures, allowing individuals, and collectives of individuals, to educate large audiences in an egalitarian manner. A great example of contemporary, Australian political satire is Sammy J's Playground Politics, a segment available on ABC iView and also YouTube and Facebook. 

Video: Sammy J’s Playground Politics: Have YOU ever made a Faustian Pact?

Sammy J parodies Play School episodes while making fun of current Aussie politics. By using humour to appeal to people's information processing, Sammy J makes an otherwise dry topic super appealing and understandable. By making it accessible through social media, he can both harness the viral networking nature of the technology to circulate his message, and also opens up a channel for everyday people to be included in the political discourse.

References: 

Brasset, J 2016, 'British comedy, global resistance: Russell Brand, Charlie Brooker and Stewart Lee', European Journal of International Relations, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 168-191.

DCU School of Communication 2013, IAMCR 2013 Plenary No. 3 - Jodi Dean, 3 July, viewed 1 February 2018, . 

Jericho, G 2012, 'How many votes are there on Twitter?’ in The Rise of the Fifth Estate, Scribe, Victoria, Australia.  

Lee,FLF 2013,'The impact of online user-generated satire on young people’s political attitudes: Testing the moderating role of knowledge and discussion', Telematics and Informatics, no. 31, pp. 397–409.

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Hey Amy,

This was such an enjoyable post to read. I found it really interesting to delve into the affordances of social media, like manipulating the personalisation and customisation of one’s image on  platform, that can ultimately have negative effects on people’s sense of self. I think Constance Hall has a massive following because she’s kind of an icon of authenticity, however that can also be dangerous too because then you’re putting yourself, and sometimes your relationships with loved ones, in very public and vulnerable positions. It’s almost like social media is a game you can’t really win, there can be risks whether you try and manipulate your self image, or try and be as authentic as possible.

Cheers,

Izzy

Digital communities

Our survival as humans is based upon on our collective abilities (TEDx Talks 2013), therefore instinctively, we are hardwired to connect and belong. As social beings who not only crave the company of others, we depend upon it to form our identity and navigate the world (Gawande 2009). Whilst traditional face-to-face communities are being overshadowed by the ease and accessibility of the digital alternative, the fundamental human need of connectedness still appears to be the innate motive.

Source: Are we too obsessed with our technology?, 2017? Where communities were once based upon physical proximity, often operating in a conventional and traditionalist manner, digital communities are characterised by shared interests, beliefs and experiences (Siapera 2012). A shift marked by the emergence of technology, social media provides users with the ability to publish content online such as videos, photos, information or personal updates whilst also allowing users to interact with others through their content (Titangos 2013). Unlike local communities, these web-based platforms such as Wordpress, Youtube or Facebook offer a much wider audience, uniting the like-minded, where they can express their true selves and felt accepted (Siapera 2012). 

Source: Reaching Out to the Online, 2012

This notion of self-expression and acceptance within a digital community can be observed through mummy blogger, Constance Hall. While Hall’s raw and polarising form of self-expression could otherwise be shunned by many within traditional communities for her controversy, she instead sought a digital community, building a network of over 1.1 million ‘queens’/followers on Facebook (Facebook 2017). This global hub has since become a community of support and empowerment for women who share the same beliefs and values in self-love, feminism and motherhood.

Source: Constance Hall, 2016

It is the personalisation and customisation of social media that has afforded users with the ability to self-select their networks and form these ‘personal communities’ (Chambers 2013 p. 147). Conversely, these very affordances have also been criticized for disconnecting communities and the splintering of identities (Chambers 2013). While it is considered that human identity assumes the ‘homogeneous characteristics which [we] share with other members of the group to which [we] belong’ (Masolo 2002, p.3), social media can fragment our lives and ultimately fragment the communities we connect with (Sze, 2017). Through the many diverse online communities we belong to, ‘each with its own worldview and system of knowledge’ (Sze, 2017), our personal identity can become complicated and confusing. Additionally, with social media offering greater control over our presentation, our ‘online identity’ can differ considerably from our offline identity (Marwick 2013) which can further exacerbate an identity crisis. This matter also raises the question of, how authentic and meaningful can a digital community be when member identities can be fabricated or highly modified?

Source: Feedback Loop, 2016

Digital communities undoubtedly fulfil our human desire to be social by offering new ways to achieve a sense of belonging and connectedness. However, it is difficult to deny the feelings that these communities are superficial and come at the cost of at a strong sense of self; a quality that I believe is an integral element to living a purposeful life.  

References:

‘Are we too obsessed with technology’ [image], in Smart Fem Digital ND., Are we too obsessed with technology, viewed 8 December 2017, <http://www.smartfem.com/tech/are-we-too-obsessed-with-our-technology/>

Chambers, D 2013, Social Media and Personal Relationships: Online Intimacies and Networked Friendship, Palgrave Macmillan UK, 2013. Ebook Central (ProQuest).

‘Constance Hall’ [image], in Facebook 2016, Constance Hall Facebook update, viewed 7 December 2017, <https://www.facebook.com/mrsconstancehall/posts/1069319443112880:0>

‘Feedback loop’ [image], in Stanford Graduate School of Business 2016, Riding the Feedback Loop to Authentic Self-Expression, viewed 8 December 2017, <https://www.gsb.stan- ford.edu/insights/riding-feedback-loop-authentic-self-expression>.

Gawande, A 2009, HELLHOLE: Annals of Human Rights, Condé Nast Publications, Ebook Central (ProQuest).

Hall, C 2016, Facebook update, 19 January, viewed 7 December 2017, <https://www.facebook.com/mrsconstancehall/posts/1069319443112880:0>

Marwick, A 2013, ‘Online identity’, in J Hartley, J Burgess & A Bruns (eds), A Companion to New Media Dynamics, Wiley‐Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 355-364.

Masolo, D 2002, ‘Community, identity and the cultural space’, Rue Descartes, vol. 32, pp. 2, viewed 7 December 2017, <https://www.cairn.info/revue-rue-descartes-2002-2-page-19.htm#pa57>.

‘Reaching out to the online’ [image], in Faith on Campus 2012, Reaching Out to the Online College Student, viewed 8 December 2017, <http://faithoncampus.com/blog/reaching-out-to-the-online-college-student/>.

Siapera, E 2012, ‘Socialities and Social Media’, in Understanding New Media, Sage, London.

Sze, D 2017, The Modern Fragmentation of Lives & Identities, Huffington Post, viewed 7 December 2017, <https://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-sze/the-modern-fragmentation-_b_13576854.html>.

TEDx Talks 2013, The lethality of loneliness: John Cacioppo at TEDxDesMoines, 9 Sep, viewed 7 December 2017, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0hxl03JoA0&t=2s>.

Titangos, H 2013, Local Community in the Era of Social Media Technologies, Chandos Publishing, Cambridge.

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Hey Andrew, I really enjoyed reading your post. Loved how you used your own  experiences and Instagram account as a case study, and I found it so interesting to read about how the platform’s affordances shaped your work and your creativity! Can’t wait to read more of your blog posts, thanks for a great read :) 

Cheers, 

Izzy

Our experience in social media varies depending our use of its affordances

‘Each technology has its affordances, and what’s powerful about certain technology often stems from these affordances’ (boyd 2014).

In August 2011 I downloaded an app to my iPhone. It was called Instagram and as far as I knew it was a way to take photos and save them to a gallery. Of course you could add a filter and frame your pictures as well if you were so inclined. I was not aware back then, however, that the main purpose of posting a picture to the app - according to the developers - was to share it with others. This was not an affordance that mattered to me, and had I been aware of it, I wouldn’t have used it for that reason. This was because none of the people I knew at the time in real life would be interested in the type of pictures I liked. For several months I posted pictures similar to what I saw everyone else - primarily my wife - post. The kids at the park. A cup of coffee. Our enormous dog waiting for a crumb to fall from the table.

This was amusing, but not really amazing. I wasn’t using the affordances that the app offered. I wasn’t tapping into the ‘power’ of the technology, as dana boyd said above.

My experience with the app changed when I started using it to its potential. One day I was wandering around a private school and noticed how the pillars of the old building cast beautiful long shadows - especially great when the black and white filter was put on them! I took a picture on my iPhone and when I posted it I added a few hashtags: #architecture #shadows #blackandwhite #building .

Images source: https://www.instagram.com/surfistatomato/

The difference this made was immediate. I went from 13 likes to 32! The hashtags worked! Lee (2017) notes that clicking on a hashtag ‘will redirect you to a page filled with posts with that same tag’. She goes on to say that this doesn’t mean that all the images there are of a similar nature, but it is a great way of collecting users with similar interests into one place. This inspired me to check out others posting to those hashtags and follow the accounts I liked. Before long I had discovered a huge network of people from all over the world who were fascinated by the same things as me! My experience was transformed, and from then on I was looking for photo opportunities literally everywhere I went. I interacted with my new community through Instagram, liking and commenting on everything I was inspired by. Soon, these people were liking and commenting on my pictures and my follower count grew. I went from double digits to triple digits - then to four digits, five digits and six digits! But more importantly photography had become my new passion. boyd (2014) notes that ‘creativity is shaped more by the ability to make new connections than to focus on a single task’. The platform and its affordances had opened up a whole new interest for me that continues to this day.

References:

Boyd, D 2012, ‘Participating in the always-on lifestyle’, in M Mandiberg (ed) The Social Media Reader, NYU Press, pp. 71-76.

Lee, J 2017, ‘Digital Media As Seen Through Today’s Technology‘, Odyssey, viewed 6 December 2017, <https://www.theodysseyonline.com/affordances-digital-media-todays-technology>.

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Affordances

My initiation into YouTube was through funny cat videos. I'm sure many others have had a similar introduction to the platform. It was just something my siblings and I did when we were kids on the rare occasions we were bored, and happened to have access to decent internet. We'd jump on YouTube and search for funny videos.

In my early adult years, I used YouTube for mostly the same reasons. It provided me with entertainment in the form of music videos and movies, or a laugh here and there. It was only recently that I realised it lay host to a whole bunch of fantastic content that can improve your knowledge on just about any subject matter. Like Don Norman (Interaction-Design.org 2011) says, "the value of a well designed object is when it has such a rich set of affordances, that the people who use it can do things with it that the designer never imagines". I never thought I'd find myself referring to YouTube nearly every day to learn something new. Over the last few years I've watched tutorials for various film-making and photo editing software which has allowed me to pursue various creative projects and I've listened to hours of stimulating book reviews which has enriched some of my own reading experiences. I feel that my higher learning has greatly benefited from this social networking technology, which, I believe, I've found so empowering because of YouTube affording a customisable learning environment (Lee, Osop, Goh & Kelni 2017, p. 612). I can find thought provoking content, but I can also search for other things that tickle my fancy: I've learnt magic tricks, recipes, soccer drills, and creative writing activities from people who share their knowledge on the platform.

Video: TED, 2015

Another advocate of informal learning processes and environments is author, John Green. In his 2015 TEDTalks video, Green shares his experience as a difficult and troublesome student throughout his high school years. He was bored with the learning materials and completely lacked the motivation to study. However in 2006, when he stumbled upon Ze Frank's YouTube channel, a spark of intrigue was ignited in Green. For the first time ever he found learning exciting and engaging, and the more he looked around at online spaces and social networks, the more he saw these affordances of learning communities. He started to notice places for people to engage in learning on unexpected platforms, for example: using the calculus tag on Tumblr to connect with math lovers, exploring sub-reddits like 'ask a historian' or 'ask science' to query professionals in those fields, and above all, the video sharing platform, YouTube.

Green claims that what intrigued him most about YouTube was its 'classroom-like' affordances, in that there's an old-fashioned-type 'instructor' who broadcasts the 'lesson' to an audience that is not always obvious, apparent, or even known to the author (Murthy 2013, p. 10). By using the comments section under each video, the 'students' are able to collaborate in their learning in asking engaging and thought-provoking questions (though, it's not often used so productively).

Reference list:

Interaction-Design.org 2011, Affordances (Don Norman, 1994), 15 February, viewed 9 December 2017, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK1Zb_5VxuM>.

Lee, CS, Osop, H, Goh DH & Kelni, G 2017, 'Making sense of comments on YouTube educational videos: a self-directed learning perspective', Online Information Review, Vol. 41, Issue. 5, pp. 611-625.

Murthy, D 2013, 'Chapter One: What is Twitter?' in Twitter: Social Communication in the Twitter Age, Polity, Cambridge.

TED 2015, Paper towns and why learning is awesome | John Green, 22 July, viewed 11 December 2017,<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgDGlcxYrhQ>.

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Digital Communities

Do you ever wish you could just take a break from the internet? Give it a flick for a few months. Go off the radar. Disconnect. I find the thought tempting, but then I think I'd feel so 'out of touch' without it. Not so much out of touch with people, like friends or family, but out of touch with the whole world. Basically all my news, entertainment, to an extent, my education is fed to me through social media, most of the content being conveniently personalised by algorithms.

While it's indisputable that the internet connects us, there also seems to be a general consensus that it distracts us from 'real' social connections. Sherry Turkle (TED-Ed 2013) elaborates on this by noting that social media grant us "the illusion of companionship without the demands of intimacy", meaning we lose something valuable in relying on new technologies to create connections with people. Turkle (TED-Ed 2013) warns that mobile technologies are creating networks that are addictive in nature and somewhat artificial; instead of truly connecting us, they tend to isolate us.

In the era of Web 2.0 we create new kinds of relationships with each other, and through this, new definitions of community. Lee & Wellman (2012, p. 8) outline how we've moved away from longstanding social operating systems that were based around groups or units (for example family, work, neighbourhood, social groups), and have moved into a society of 'networked individuals,' where the person is the focus.

Source: The Verge, 2017

I often scrutinise my own social media use and wonder if I ceased to use the internet for a bit, would it impact my notions of society and community? Would using the internet less enhance my connections with other people or would my relationships crumble? How much would I gain, and how much would I miss out on? These are the questions that keep me up at night. Thankfully, The Verge journalist, Paul Miller, wrote an article about going internet-free for a whole year, so I can get some perspective, and sleep.

Image: Paul Miller, 2017

Miller writes how he initially enjoyed being pulled away from the echo chambers that internet culture created. He found himself being productive and creative as he let his ideas branch out freely. Soon though, he struggled to keep in touch with friends who were overseas or interstate. Work became increasingly difficult, he began to feel as though he was burdening his co-workers by being off-line (Miller would drop off a thumbdrive of his work to the office each day as opposed to collaborating over the internet) (Kelly 2013). He started to feel "out of sync with the flow of life." I imagine I would feel the same. Miller recognises that even while spending time away from the internet, it still had an impact on him because he'd already created an inextricable link to it. In embracing these technologies and creating digital communities in the first place, we've already redefined what human connection is.

Reference list:

Kelly, H 2013, Disconnected: My year without the Internet, CNN, viewed 9 December 2017, <http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/10/tech/web/paul-miller-internet-year/index.html>.

Lee, R & Wellman, B 2012, ' The New Social Operating System of Networked Individualism' in Networked : The New Social Operating System, MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

'Paul Miller' [image], in I’m still here: back online after a year without the internet, The Verge, viewed 9 December 2017, <https://www.theverge.com/2013/5/1/4279674/im-still-here-back-online-after-a-year-without-the-internet>.

TED-Ed 2013, Connected, but alone? Sherry Turkle, 19 April, viewed 3 August 2016, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv0g8TsnA6c>.