Internet Fundamentals/Social Media

Social media are computer-mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, career interests and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks. This lesson introduces social media and social networking.

Facebook

YouTube

WhatsApp

Instagram

Snapchat

Twitter

Reddit

Pinterest

LinkedIn

Objectives and Skills

Objectives and skills for this lesson include:

• Define essential social networking and Web 2.0 concepts.
• Describe the different types of social media tools and applications
  • Explain the characteristics of the term ‘social media’
  • Identify different types of social-media tools and applications
  • Illustrate some of the issues associated with the use of social media tools and applications
• Compare different types of social media tools and applications
  • Select one social media type to review
  • Review the most popular tools, and applications, within that social media type
  • Itemise the benefits across a range of the most popular tools and applications
  • Select the most appropriate social media tool or application
• Set up and use, popular social media tools and applications
  • Identify the social media tools and applications available for possible implementation
  • Initiate the preferred social media tools, and applications, for use
  • Establish the social media interface, using text and file content
  • Initiate social networking interaction
  • Test and evaluate tools, and applications, for ease of use
  • Present the findings

Readings

1. Wikipedia: Social media
2. Wikipedia: Web 2.0

Multimedia

1. YouTube: Social Media in Plain English
2. YouTube: Social Media

Student Presentations

1. YouTube: Social Media
2. YouTube: Social Media

Activities

1. Complete the tutorial TutorialsPoint: Social Networking. Based on the information provided, decide which of the following social media sites interest you.
2. Complete one or more of the following. If you are completing this course as part of a real-world class, consider sharing account information with your classmates, or setting up a class group and/or class hashtag.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: Blog Basics. Research free traditional blogging sites and create a new blog.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: Facebook. If you don't already have a Facebook account, sign up for Facebook and set up your account.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: Instagram. If you don't already have an Instagram account, sign up for Instagram and share photos.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: LinkedIn Basics. If you don't already have a LinkedIn account, sign up for LinkedIn and set up your profile.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: Pinterest. If you don't already have a Pinterest account, sign up for Pinterest and create a board.
   • Review GCFLearnFree: Snapchat. If you don't already have a Snapchat account, sign up for Snapchat and share photos.
3. Review Smart Insights: The Honeycomb model. Evaluate each of the most popular social media sites (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Tumblr, Twitter, YouTube) based on their level of support for each of the honeycomb framework elements (identity, conversations, sharing, presence, relationships, reputation, groups). Which sites support the full honeycomb framework? Which sites are lacking elements?

Lesson Summary

• Social media are computer-mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, career interests and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks.
• Common social media features include:
  • Social media are interactive Web 2.0 Internet-based applications.
  • User-generated content and data generated through all online interactions are the lifeblood of social media.
  • Users create service-specific profiles for the website or app that are designed and maintained by the social media organization.
  • Social media facilitate the development of online social networks by connecting a user's profile with those of other individuals or groups.
• Popular social media websites include Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Tumblr, Twitter, and YouTube.
• Facebook supports user profiles, friends, message exchange, status updates, photo sharing, software applications, groups, and notifications.
• Instagram supports photo and video sharing, digital filter application, geotags, hashtags, linking to other Instagram content, and connecting Instagram accounts to other social media profiles.
• LinkedIn supports user profiles, professional networking, curriculum vitae (CV) / résumé sharing, and connections to other users.
• Pinterest supports sharing and categorization of images using boards, and following other users' boards.
• Reddit supports social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion through text posts and direct links, with users rating submissions.
• Snapchat supports image and multimedia messaging, with pictures and messages only available for a short time before they become inaccessible.
• Tumblr supports microblogging with multimedia and other content, and following other users' blogs.
• Twitter supports posting of 280-character messages known as "tweets", and following other users.
• YouTube supports video-sharing, rating, and following other users' submissions.
• Social media changes the way individuals and large organizations communicate.
• For content contributors, the benefits of participating in social media have gone beyond simply social sharing to building a reputation and bringing in career opportunities and monetary income.
• Social media operate in a dialogic transmission system (many sources to many receivers). This is in contrast to traditional media which operates under a monologic transmission model (one source to many receivers).
• Social media can help to improve individuals' sense of connectedness with real or online communities and social media can be an effective communication (or marketing) tool for corporations, entrepreneurs, nonprofit organizations, including advocacy groups and political parties and governments.
• Concerns have been raised about possible links between heavy social media use and depression, and issues of cyberbullying, online harassment and "trolling".
• Companies are increasingly using social media monitoring tools to monitor, track, and analyze online conversations on the Web about their brand or products or about related topics of interest.
• Social media services are defined by seven elements known as the "honeycomb framework":
  1. Identity - The extent to which users reveal their personal or professional identities.
  2. Conversations - The extent to which users communicate with other users.
  3. Sharing - The extent to which users exchange, distribute, and receive content.
  4. Presence - The extent to which users know if other users are available.
  5. Relationships - The extent to which users can be connected to other users.
  6. Reputation - The extent to which users can identify the standing of users.
  7. Groups - The extent to which users can form communities and sub-communities.
• Chatbots and social bots are programmed to mimic natural human interactions such as liking, commenting, following, and unfollowing on social media platforms. The ability for bots to mimic human interaction makes it difficult for participants, marketers, and data analysts to differentiate between human interactions and automated bot interactions.
• Privacy rights advocates warn users on social media about the collection of their personal data.
• A Web 2.0 website may allow users to interact and collaborate with each other in a social media dialogue as creators of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to the first generation of Web 1.0-era websites where people were limited to the passive viewing of content.

Key Terms

blog

A discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries.

crowdsourcing

Individuals or organizations use contributions from Internet users to obtain needed services or ideas.

folksonomy

A system in which users apply public tags to online items, typically to aid them in finding those items.

instant messaging

A type of online chat that offers real-time text transmission over the Internet.

netiquette

The rules of etiquette that apply when communicating over the Internet or social networks or devices.

presence

A status indicator that conveys ability and willingness of a potential communication partner to communicate.

Semantic Web

A common framework that allows data to be shared and reused across application, enterprise, and community boundaries.

social networking

An online platform which people use to build social networks or social relations with other people who share similar personal or career interests, activities, backgrounds or real-life connections.

spim

A type of spam targeting users of instant messaging (IM) services

text messaging

The act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of fixed or portable devices.

Web 2.0

Websites that emphasize user-generated content, usability, and interoperability for end users.

wiki

A website on which users collaboratively modify content and structure directly from the web browser.

Assessments

• Flashcards: Quizlet: Social Media
• Quiz: Quizlet: Social Media

See Also

• Social Media
• SproutSocial: Social Media Demographics
• RealSimple: Social Media Etiquette

References

← Email

Internet Fundamentals

Communications →