Social Media Trends

Public

Discussion:

Lynda,

Can you explain what you mean by social networking "comes and goes?" Let me share another perspective that might help reshape the way you look at "social media" and its impact on society. When we talk about social media, we are not talking about platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the other usual brands the term "social media" typically conjures in peoples' heads. We are really talking about web-based tools that facilitates human interaction where Facebook, etc. are merely examples of such tools.

That being said, the way we interact changes everything from how we learn, how we get our news, how we shop, how our decisions are influenced, how we do business, how we collaborate, and even how we define "friend." It changes everything and there are serious implications in all aspects of life. When you think about platforms such as Facebook with over 1 billion people or LinkedIn with over 200 million and all the other forms of this new technology that has permeated society and is global - it has arguably become infrastructure and it will continue to evolve.

It requires an entirely new set of skills to navigate but before those skills can be developed - before we ever talk about how you specifically use a platform such as Facebook, there needs to be a change in mindset - in how we view "social media." Changing perspectives is one of the fundamental intended outcomes of this particular course - it is a necessary starting point to start talking about how to use this new infrastructure strategically to help us achieve goals. Understanding social media is a blend of understanding technology, sociology, and human interaction among many other things. Keep all of this in mind as it provides much needed context. I encourage you to ask many questions as needed to get as much out of this learning experience as possible. View the content in the course as merely a foundation to the discussions we should be having. If you need clarification on anything - don't hesitate to ask. This forum is actually an example of social media in action!

Robert Starks Jr.

Lynda, Can you explain what you mean by social networking "comes and goes?" Let me share another perspective that might help reshape the way you look at "social media" and its impact on society. When we talk about social media, we are not talking about platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the other usual brands the term "social media" typically conjures in peoples' heads. We are really talking about web-based tools that facilitates human interaction where Facebook, etc. are merely examples of such tools. That being said, the way we interact changes everything from how we learn, how we get our news, how we shop, how our decisions are influenced, how we do business, how we collaborate, and even how we define "friend." It changes everything and there are serious implications in all aspects of life. When you think about platforms such as Facebook with over 1 billion people or LinkedIn with over 200 million and all the other forms of this new technology that has permeated society and is global - it has arguably become infrastructure and it will continue to evolve. It requires an entirely new set of skills to navigate but before those skills can be developed - before we ever talk about how you specifically use a platform such as Facebook, there needs to be a change in mindset - in how we view "social media." Changing perspectives is one of the fundamental intended outcomes of this particular course - it is a necessary starting point to start talking about how to use this new infrastructure strategically to help us achieve goals. Understanding social media is a blend of understanding technology, sociology, and human interaction among many other things. Keep all of this in mind as it provides much needed context. I encourage you to ask many questions as needed to get as much out of this learning experience as possible. View the content in the course as merely a foundation to the discussions we should be having. If you need clarification on anything - don't hesitate to ask. This forum is actually an example of social media in action! Robert Starks Jr.