A Blog to Remember (M8.1)

Social media has become a large part of my life since I grew up in the generation where computers and more specifically the Internet age is a blooming fad. As more and more apps and web sites are designed to keep you posted and connected to the world more people feel inclined to contribute to that content. Those contributing to the content on the Internet are not always considered “produsers”, although we are composing tweets and sharing information, we don’t own the rights to that content, it becomes Twitter’s, Instagram’s or Facebook’s.

Throughout the majority of this course I was introduced to new ways of sharing information on the Internet or by a click of your cell phone. I’ve never been the type of girl who cared much about social media as I mentioned in previous posts. Twitter just recently became a frequent used app for me and I would say it’s my second most used social media outlet now after taking this course. I don’t believe I’m a “produser” at the moment, “unless we regard every twitter and facebook update as an act of creativity” (Bird 512), which we don’t.

I’m in the English and Writing program in hopes to get into the advertisement business later in my career. Next year I will be attending Humber College for a postgraduates program in Copy Write Advertisement so after taking this course I noticed how useful social media and the Internet can be (if used proactively that is). “Produsing” content via the Internet and smart phones creates a quick and instant connection to what the user needs. By having to keep up with a monthly blog contribution and actually taking interest in posting blogs my self, I have realized that I would like to engage in the “produser” age. Also, since I feel inclined to be apart of the advertising sphere in my future career, I feel like I would eventually contribute to being “produser”, creating advertisements, or social media outlets for companies to acquire ways to get their business out there.

Although there are many benefits that come with being apart of the information age and having the opportunity of “produsing” there are some aspects of deprival. In the article “Are We All Produsers Now?” Bird states, “we must not forget that online produsage is not the only way to engage actively with media; action spurred by media takes many forms other than the creation of more media” (Bird 512). Although we have easier access to information and content we must realized there are other outlets that may be more trustworthy or helpful. We must not forget about offline information that can also be accessed. Even though it’s easier to turn on your computer and type into a search engine what you are looking for, going outside the sources of social media and online outlets can benefit your self as well. We must not be totally consumed by the products of the Internet and we must focus on other aspects. Another issue that may arise is the notion of whom you can and cannot trust on the Internet. “Critical consumption, or what Ernest Hemingway called “crap detection,” is the literacy of trying to figure out what and who is trustworthy—and what and who is not trustworthy—online” (Rheingold). Sites like Wikipedia offer information that can be changed frequently, so you must make sure to double-check your sources when using specific sites like that. Overall, for me the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, but it is all solely on how you choose to use your information productively, which is always a challenge now-a-days

Works Cited

Bird, S. E. (2011). Are We All Produsers Now? Cultural Studies. 25 (4-5), pp. 502-516. http://bit.ly/1a8JmGh

Rheingold, H. (2010). Attention, and Other 21st-Century Social Media Literacies. EDUCAUSE Review. 45:5. pp. 14-24. http://bit.ly/S0yO1z

Social Media: The Outlet to Many Personas (M2.1)

Over the last decade the Internet, and more recently, social media has become a huge part of a lot of peoples day-to-day lives. I’m not going to lie I was kind of late hopping on the social media train. I mean I didn’t get Facebook until my first year of university…four to five years after it became popularized. As for twitter I only started using it last year!

Although I was a late bloomer, once I obtained a smart phone, things changed. The social media outlets I use most frequently are instagram, twitter and I was always an on again, off again blogger. Now I always figured, might as well keep my outlets open for the world to see, never privatizing them—thinking, “they’ll manage to find out who I am eventually.” I have always been an open person when it comes to expressing my personality, never shying away from my quirky, odd behaviours. Social media tends to let me express those attributes through different outlets such as pictures or 140 characters.

Depending on my mood, or the situation I’m presented in, depicts the social media outlet I choose to use. My first online persona would be my instagram, since it’s the most frequently used. My account is open for anyone to see so anyone searching my username (see_bomb) could find and look through my photos.  I’m able to tell a story or picture a moment in a click of a button. When I observe something special or something that reflects me, which I would like to share to my 186 followers, I snap a quick shot, add a quick filter and write a quick blurb all describing what I’m experiencing at that specific moment. Usually my pictures reflect my day, whether it’s a meal I’m proud of cooking or a new outfit, even the occasional, I’m-bored-and-stuck-at-work selfie. I have pictures with friends, and the frequent action shot of something that I felt like sharing to all my followers– my favourite post at the moment being the note and chocolate bar a random stranger left for anyone to come across in the Brock Library cubical on the ninth floor!

The second outlet I most frequently use is twitter. I was never a big fan, until recently, never really grasping the concept of the hashtag. Now that I have become more familiar with the concept of this social media outlet I started “tweeting” phrases of 140 characters or less of what I am feeling or what is going on in my head at that moment. Whether it’s a quote from somewhere that I feel pertains to me at that moment or a quick rant about missing the bus, I am still able to refrain and look over what I wrote making sure there isn’t any spelling mistakes and double checking if I REALLY want to press send on that snarky comment about a roommate clogging the shower drain. Also, the ability to delete is a HUGE part of social media that restrains the persona of an individual outside of the virtual world. Having these aspects behind social media outlets allows a person so tweak and fix anything that they regret putting up, unlike face-to-face discussions, changing the concept of someone’s persona from the online world versus the real world.

Before posting something on any outlet, I use to not care doing whatever I wanted, but that was before my family and classmates had me on my social media sites. Now that these outlets are becoming more frequently used by every generation, I tend to put a filter on most of what I choose to put up, making sure not to offend anyone or cause trouble for my self in the future. Although I only frequently use two social media sites I don’t think my persona is much different. Since Instagram is just pictures of what I see or feel at that moment it reflects a more spontaneous side of me, while twitter reflects my literate side. These outlets are just ways for me to express different sides of myself that some day-to-day real life experiences can’t. I’m not saying I’m completely different person in everyday life; it’s just an outlet to express my individuality and allowing others to see that aspect.