Digital Communities. @phoebeditommaso-blog - Tumblr Blog

Social Gaming: Playing the crowd.

The case study in focus in this weeks readings, in particular the Mittani/EVE case (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014) was an eye-opener for me! Having been completely naïve to the online gaming world and not partaking in any (minus dabbling in words with friends way back..) online gaming communities, I found the depth of interactions, and in this case conflict that ensued within the games and communities an interesting topic of study.

The crossover, or the blurred lines in this case, highlight the potential issues with the online gaming world involving multiple players and the forming of online communities.

My take on this article, and the online gaming world in general, is that the need for clearly defined rules, and ‘laws’ based on morals and ethics within the game and external of the game are needed. As the EVE online gaming community saw in ‘The Mittani’ issue, where the player made comments that seemed to encourage other players to gang up on a particular player and make another player commit suicide, the need for separation between real / online world needs to be clear. Whilst the game indeed promotes and encourages murder, thievery and in general ‘villainous’ efforts, it needs to make sure that this doesn’t affect players IRL (in real life). The world of online gaming / real-life is separate, the level at which players become involved and consumed can have an affect on well-being that needs to be looked at. Understandably this looks more towards a phycology aspect of the issue, the need for strict guidelines and laws need to be attained online to ensure the safety of players.

The idea of cyber-bullying in any way ‘irks’ me, so of course the ability to be able to sit down and ‘virtually’ murder someone does not sit well with me at all. If social gaming has progressed from face to face board games of monopoly and scrabble, which seem to promote socialising and interaction, the online world of todays MMORPG platforms seem a fair way away from the ‘social gaming’ world of yesterday.

Whilst being connected online to multiple players, the idea of Sherry Turkles ‘Connected, but alone?’ from wayyyy back in week one resonates as a strong theme throughout the online gaming world.

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

de Zwart, M & Humphreys, S 2014,' The Lawless Frontier of Deep Space: Code as Law in EVE Online', Cultural Studies Review, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 77-99.

Visual Communities & Social Imaging.

This week has explored the idea of visual communities and the networks and groups that are created through the world of ‘visual’ social and digital media.

I quite liked the quote from Snapchat creator Evan Speigel

“The selfie makes sense as the fundamental unit of communication on Snapchat because it marks the transition between digital media as self-expression and digital media as communication.” It explores the idea of the evolution of communication, what was once seen as visual documentation of where and what you’re up to – to now communicating through visual tools as opposed to calling/texting.

Something that really resonated with me in this weeks readings / viewings was the YouTube interview of Nathan Jurgssan < Photography, Self Documentation, & Social Media: An Interview with Nathan Jurgenson (2014) https://youtu.be/MnPtZ5lKDHo > and the fact that the way in which we now think about activities we participate in or places we visit now has some thoughts as to ‘can this be shared on Social Media’ which I am absolutely a victim of. I think the idea that we consciously have to think about having a ‘digital detox’ or moments in which we escape our phones is a confronting but unavoidable truth in todays world.

I classify myself in the non you-tuber catergory, and rarely check my snapchat – so for me the idea of communicating through visual is mainly through the use of my Instagram (mainly business/branding) and Facebook, which I primararily use to keep updated/update friends and family I am less connected with on a regular basis. On the flipside – this idea of affinity / belonging / community, I can recognise through my brother and his social media following. My brother (@domtomato) is a Parkour athlete with a large social media following. He utilises his Instagram to ‘talk’ to his followers and communicate where he is and what he is up to. From there, he promotes his YouTube channel, in which his aim is to generate more subscribers to his channel and inturn, build his community. Tying back into the YouTube video interview by Nathan Jurgssan, my brothers world (to a degree) revolves around creating content for his social media and documenting his parkour adventures as well as some day to day activities that he can continue to share with his followers.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3jXR-xcjcf9UTkL-tcg3xw

And for a little laugh – a friend sent me this video yesterday which I feel ties well into this weeks theme, Enjoy!

Crowdsourcing in times of crisis.

This week we’ve looked at crowdsourcing in times of crisis – what it means and it’s effectiveness in the situations.

Contrary to my first thought on the definition of crowdsourcing (I thought it was monetary based!) a broad definition that can be used is 'the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers'. (Merriam Webster Online 2014)

From my understanding and from the examples drawn upon in this weeks learning’s – crowdsourcing looks at the stream of information that comes through from the digital world surrounding particular events – in the case of this week, crisis revolving around natural disasters.

Whilst the research report on the QLD floods in 2011 (CCI flood reports 2017) showed the effectiveness of social platforms such as Twitter - with the ability to share and deliver information quickly to the masses through emergency / trusted media outlets such as Queensland Police Media Unit and Courier Mail. With the use of relevant hashtags, the information and updates around the crisis could be shared quickly and effectively.

Another example would be the 2013 NSW bushfires and the use of social media throughout. Whilst the ABC is Australia’s public broadcaster, the use of social media platforms allowed the digital world to contribute images to story through online tools such as ‘storify’ and ‘thinglink’.

As technology continues to evolve, the level of information available and shared to the world increases. Whilst this can enable information to be made readily available, it is important that the clarity of news provided to the masses is relevant and credible. Development in the area may include more effective means to ‘filter’ through information sharing to pinpoint exact areas affected by different crisis across the globe. In times of crisis, innovative means are becoming available for facilitating and improving the flow of information among communities when and where they need it most.

Axel Bruns , Jean Burgess , Kate Crawford , and Frances Shaw . #qldfloods and @QPSMedia: Crisis Communication on Twitter in the 2011 South East Queensland Floods . Brisbane: ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation, 2012.

'crowdsourcing entry' 2014, Merriam Webster, viewed 3 August 2016,<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crowdsourcing>.

onMedia 2014, Interactive and Social Media Documenting Australian Bushfires, viewed 3 August 2016, <http://onmedia.dw-akademie.de/english/?p=13759>.

Trolling & Social Media Conflict.

As with everything in our digital age.. the accessibility to a digital community or access to a wider audience has bought forward the issues of online trolling and social media conflict.

If I reflect on my childhood, I feel somewhat relieved to think I only had to deal with the beginnings of social media (such as MSN & MySpace) compared to the social media storm that youth are immersed in today. Whilst I avoided any bullying thorough out school, my younger brother was often victimized and put down for being different. The difference I feel between then and now, would be that it didn’t continue once he was home. These days it could continue well past the school yard and filter into the whole world we live in.

Boyd (2014) explores the issue of bullying and the amplification social media allows, and concludes that “while new forms of drama find a home through social media, teens behaviors have not significantly changed. Social Media has not radically altered the dynamics of bullying, but it has made these dynamics more visible to people.”

Whilst cyber trolling in schools is an issue schools and governments look to fight against, the issue is not exclusive to just schoolyard bullying. Trolling and conflict arise on any issues, from political differences through to health & performance coaching. The ability to ‘click & comment’ just allows everyone to ‘have a say’ even if it is a controversial or immoral opinion or comment.

Companies such as TrollBusters (Trollbusters 2017) look to fight against these issues and counter these attacks by flooding affected profiles/articles with positivity.

The access that the online world has created is inevitable, and will continue to evolve just as technology does. The underlying issues of WHY people need to create conflict and attack others is the bigger issue here, which will continue to be a much bigger fight.

Boyd, 2014), in It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens,

TrollBusters 2017, About The Project, Troll-Busters.com, viewed 29th December 2017, <https://www.troll-busters.com>

Activism & Protesting

The term activism brings to mind images of mass crowds creating statements and efforts through mass force to protest and change against our governments.

By definition, activism means “the doctrine or practice of vigorous action or involvement as a means of achieving political or other goals, sometimes by demonstrations, protests, etc.” (dictionary.com)

In today’s digital age, activism and protesting is now supported by a whole other level of ‘mass’ through means of internet accessibility, social media platforms the connected world we now live in.

When looking at digital citizenship, it refers to the ‘ability to participate in society online” (Mossberger, 2008) With the internet and the accessibility anyone has to be ‘online’ the voices across the political scope have become louder and louder.

Culture Jamming has been a progressive feature in protesting through-out the years. The concept relates to in context “the joke-y, trollish practice, then prevalent in the C.B. radio community, of disrupting other users’ conversations with obscene or nonsensical interjections; billboard banditry is the neo-situational practice of illegally altering billboards to perversely funny, usually political effect in order to critique consumerism, capitalism, representations of race and gender in advertising, or American foreign policy.” (Dery, 2010) Whilst the ideas behind cultural jamming remain the same – disruptive, anti-establishment, etc. The ability to now ‘share’ this culture has increased with the online world. With analytics on trends & hash tags on twitter and the ability to follow certain groups on other social media platforms, the reach of cultural jamming has expanded dramatically.

Slacktivsm can be defined as “actions performed via the Internet in support of a political or social cause but regarded as requiring little time or involvement, e.g. signing an online petition or joining a campaign group on a social media website or application.”

Whilst the impact of social media campaigns is undeniable, integrity and credibility must be questioned on the follow through of campaigns and movements online. A case study of the 2012 Joseph Kony and the ‘invisible children” campaign is a prime example of such. Truthloader (2013) explores and questions the campaign, which involved protesets, campaigning and fundraising to act and stop the Ugandan criminal known for childrens armies and slavery across Africa. The campaign saw millions of activations online as well as in person, but once the dust had settles from the campaigning and activations, the question of where the funds had gone and if it produced an outcome or arrest of Joesph Kony were completely null. The social media campaign was like no other, but in reality has probably achieved very little, other than awareness to the situation. Slacktivsm requires actionable change, with a lot to be said for following through after ‘clicking’ your support.

Social Media provides a public forum for activists free from physical boundaries and opens up more opportunity to empower the digital community to push for change.

Truthloader (2013)<http://bit.ly/1pk3M06>

Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C., & McNeal, R 2008, Digital Citizenship: The InternenetSociety, and Participation MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.

Politics & Civil Cultures.

The effect of technology and the age of social media is a growing impact on todays political platform. A way to reach more and different audiences across various social media channels has influenced the way politicians interact with the public.

Facebook, Twitter & YouTube are direct examples of how Politicians have changed the way they communicate to the public, in order to ‘stay in touch’ with younger and newer voters.

A look at Kevin Rudd VS Tony Abbotts social media platforms explores the different types and ways in which the 2 Australian Leaders utilise the digital world (smh.com.au, n.d) and also gives an overview as to the other parties and their use of Social media as a means of communication. In comparison to other forms of advertising, social media allows Politicians to communicate DIRECTLY with voters. Forums such as twitter and Facebook allow like-minded people to discuss, communicate and build communities around particular politicians and events/ideas or legislation.

Jurgen Habermas (1962) describes the public sphere to be a place where people can come together and debate things that matter - and to have an influence over policy decisions or have some power to make change. The public sphere is situated between the personal sphere (private) and authority (government), but has access to both. The public sphere has dramatically expanded with the digital age and accessibility to voice ones opinion is now easily achieved.

Although the growing popularity of the public sphere increases the level of communication between the public and government, the question of the level of impact or relativity to action can be questioned. In a lecture on communicative capitalism, political science professor Jodi Dean discusses the impact of social media and the role it plays in democracy. She argues that whilst it creates contribution to an idea or message, the message can be forgotten amongst the ‘noise’ created by the amount of contributions. So whilst the growing level of participation in political and civic cultures in the online world grows, it it still important to note that perhaps the level of accessibility and can sometimes drown the true ideas and changes that need to be made.

SMH http://images.smh.com.au/file/2013/08/07/4640158/Web_ElectionSocial/

IAMCR 2013 plenary No. 3 - Jodi Dean (2013) <http://bit.ly/1q5rYZn>

https://youtu.be/N5ABPuNQ6IU

davidnorris

Digital communities & social media

In this modern age, connectivity seems to be the lifeblood of society. In days of yore the punishment for a misbehaving child was to be grounded; disconnected from friends from across the street, unable to meet with friends at the corner store or down the park. Modern parenting punishment often revolves around removing a child’s access to the Wi-Fi. Sherry Turkle discusses at length about this new age of connectivity in her TedTalk, “Connected, but alone?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv0g8TsnA6c

She talks about how humans suffer from a sense of loneliness which can be rectified by picking up their phone. It’s a convenient way to get micro-doses of our social cravings and it can be accessed anywhere, at any time. Friends are a product we consume like food; if we’re hungry for social interaction, we go eat a conversation (TED-Ed 2013).

Where we consume this social snack has greatly changed as well. The parks and the milk bars have been swapped for YouTube, online forums, and Facebook. These types of websites have completely reshaped the way we look at the word “community”. Traditionally, a sporting club can be considered a community; where players have an idealised bond to the emblem, colours or uniform. There’s no rationality behind it, but it’s done out of a sense of being. An online community is no different except that it takes place online.

A society is much like a community but it’s bond is formed on rational, combined goals. Much like the sporting team that has a common goal is to win at their chosen sport. Along with the society comes social capital; which looks at what individuals we are associated with, what our relationship is with them, and how we’re benefitted by it (Siapera & Eugenia 2012).

Social media’s affordance could be to gain social capital through these groups. Meeting new people and discovering information about them when they may not have been someone you connect with in other circumstances. An affordance of Facebook that is unique compared to other platforms such as Twitter; Instagram, Snapchat and many more is its two-way connectivity. Users are forced to become “Friends” whereas a Twitter follow does not necessarily mean that person will be exposed to your content.

Facebook’s connectivity can be tailored to suit the user, whereas Twitter is much the same as a telegraph; a short quick message that anyone can access (Murthy 2012). Social media has become a space for microblogging. A way for users to express themselves anyway they want, when they want with a built-in audience. People from all around the world can comment, like, share and praise us for our thoughts and comments. It provides us with a small nugget of connectivity that Sherry Turkle tells us that we crave so much (Cross 2011).

Reference list

Cross M 2011, “Bloggerati, Twitterati : How Blogs and Twitter Are Transforming Popular Culture”, ABC-CLIO, LLC.

Murthy D 2012, “Twitter: Social communication in the Twitter Age”, Wiley.

Siapera & Eugenia 2012, “Understanding New Media”, SAGE, London, pp 191 - 208.

TED-Ed 2013 “Connected, but alone? – Sherry Turkle”, YouTube, viewed 6 December 2017, < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv0g8TsnA6c>.

phoebeditommaso-blog

I completely agree with the way the world and our social world has changed. Catching up with people now involves checking your phone to see what your friends are up to. Are conversations different as people now assume they know what you’ve done today (as in posted) or the instant-ness of messaging mean we can have answers straight away. I think the technology has allowed us to become closer, quicker. But i often wonder at what cost does it come at to human communication and relationships.

Affordances of our digital world.

“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.”

(Don Norman, as cited in Affordances Interaction-Design.org 2011)

In looking at different platforms of social media and comparing, we can develop a deeper understanding of the different affordances and ways we connect and interact through the different mediums.

Siapera (2012) discusses the affordances of new media and notes that developments in the technological world have afforded their emergence as a dominant form of social organisation. The research by Wellman looked at the social affordances of new media & the possibilities they have created for social relationships and social structure. The parameters explored and discussed were bandwidth, personalisation, wireless portability & global connectivity. Our experience with the online world and the platforms has drastically changed in the past years with the advancement of technology.

The affordances of a social media platform such as Facebook allows us to be connected with friends and people all over the world, to socialise and ‘network’ around topics that collectively interest a larger group of people than we ever have had before. On the other hand, the social media platform Twitter, enables anyone to connect based on the topic or #hashtag utilised. As opposed to Facebook where most of the sharing is between selected friends and networks, Twitter usually operates in an ‘en masse’ forum, in which anyone (in the millions) can be seen and heard) the affordances of such connectedness can be viewed in a positive light, and that we can globally discuss topics that are relevant. But on the flipside, the ability to have access to ‘vent’ or ‘oppose’ or ‘lash out’ at others before really reflecting if it is the right thing today is now also a harsh reality of living in todays technological world.

In critically looking at the affordances of social media, an article posted on the idea of social media and it’s impact on our everyday lives looks at the dangers of the time we now spend ‘active’ or ‘ON’ social media (http://www.timewellspent.io) The article touches on the notion of how social media controls our world today and how it shapes the thoughts and feelings of the world. Whilst the technology of today allows us to be connected to the world, and ‘in touch’ with people all over the world, the TED talk "How a handful of tech companies control billions of minds every day" https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=636&v=C74amJRp730 looks at the depth in which tech companies go to, to capture the minds of US, daily. It discusses the ‘cost’ of this technology and how it changes the way we communicate, react and relate to one another.

REFERENCES

Boyd, D 2014, ‘Participating in the Always-On Lifestyle’, in M Manadalong (ed.), The Social Media Reader, NYU Press, pp. 71-76.

Siapera, E 2012, ‘Socialities and social media’, in E Siappera (ed.), Understanding New Media, SAGE, London, pp. 191-208.

"How a handful of tech companies control billions of minds every day"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=636&v=C74amJRp730

SOCIAL MEDIA & DIGITAL COMMUNITITES – Theories, approaches & general ideas.

Throughout Weeks 1-4, we have looked at the different ideas and theories around Social media & the digital age and the influence it has on our everyday life. The digital world is now an undeniable part of our day to day life and how we interact & communicate with the world around us (via many different platforms and mediums) But it’s how we choose to take part or let it be apart of our lives that are redefining our relationships with others.

danah boyd (2012) discusses the idea that we are now in a constantly ON state of being “Like many others around me, I am perpetually connected to people and information through a series of devices and social media channels. This is often something that's described in generational terms, with 'digital natives' being 'always on' and everyone else hobbling along trying to keep up with the technology. But, while what technology is available to each generation at key life stages keeps changing, being 'always on' isn't so cleanly generational

- (danah boyd 2012, p. 72).

The criticism of the digital world is also explored through the TED talk by Sherry Turkle 'Connected, but alone' https://youtu.be/rv0g8TsnA6c And discusses her concerns about people becoming connected only through technology, and therefore disconnected from their inner and outer lives and personal real-world contexts.

With Siapera (2012) looking at the definitions of Community being formed around a natural, organic will & includes all the associations in which we partake out of our own choice and volition, while member- ship is self-fulfilling: friendships, neighbourhood groups, voluntary organizations, families and so on are examples of communities. Society is formed on the basis of rational will, and membership takes the form of an instrumental association, that leads to certain goals: for example, membership in a city or state as citizens (rights, protection etc.), or in private companies (profit etc.).

The evolution of these definitions in todays world expands into the online & digital world, and explores the idea of virtual communities being based on shared ideas and interests as opposed to shared physical space.

With the accessibility to various social media platforms and networks, the pull of living in an online world is inescapable. With statistics (socialmedianews.com.au) constantly being monitored and usage on Facebook (15,000,000) & Instagram (9,000, 000) monthly users, the evolution of what a ‘community’ stands for has undeniably been shifted.

REFERENCES

Boyd, D 2014, ‘Participating in the Always-On Lifestyle’, in M Manadalong (ed.), The Social Media Reader, NYU Press, pp. 71-76.

Siapera, E 2012, ‘Socialities and social media’, in E Siappera (ed.), Understanding New Media, SAGE, London, pp. 191-208.

TED-Ed 2013, Connected, but alone?- Sherry Turkle, 19 April, viewed 26 August 2014, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv0g8TsnA6c>.

SOCIAL MEDIA STATISTICS AUSTRALIA – OCTOBER 2017 <https://www.socialmedianews.com.au/social-media-statistics-australia-october-2017/> viewed

ebonymccabe1-blog

Seems familiar … <https://medium.com/alt-ledes/stop-sharing-this-photo-of-antisocial-newspaper-readers-533200ffb40f>

dgdigitalcommunities

Interesting article Ebony – thanks for sharing. I think the internet has, as Leccese and Lanson (2015) has subtitled their book, expanded the conversation of journalism. Blogs are one example. Tumblr alone as at August 2017 hosted 359 million blogs. According to Cross (2011, p.38) many are started as a means of personal expression and the chance to comment and converse with others. It is just the interaction is not face to face. Blogs cover a whole raft of topics by a wide range of people, traditional journalists included. This is supported by Cross (2011, p.50) who says they have given a voice to the countless that have previously been unheard and to the “microcultures of news, politics, business and opinion”. At the very least blogs offer a far greater range of conversation topics than traditional newspapers ever have.

References:

Cross, M 2011, Got Blog, in Bloggerati, Twitterati: How blogs and Twitter are transforming popular culture, Praeger, Santa Barbara.

Leccese, M and Lanson, J 2015, The elements of blogging, Focal Press, Safari Tech Books Online, viewed 4 December 2017, <http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com.ezproxy.lib.swin.edu.au/book/web-applications-and-services/social-media/9781317694236/2-two-models-the-reporter-blogger-vsdot-the-op-ed-blogger/ch02_xhtml?uicode=swinburneu>.

Week 4

Blogging Practies & Cases

In Week 4 we looked at the ‘Blogosphere’ and it’s part in digital communities and the digital culture. In relation to ‘publics’ and how these 2 ideas intersect, we can look at the definition of publics as ‘a concrete audience, a crowd witnessing itself in visible space, as with a theatrical public’ (Michael Warner, 2002) which implies a bounded totality. Or in the world of Mizuko Ito “Publics can be reactors, [re]makers and [re]distributors, engaging in shared culture and knowledge through discourse and social exchange as well as through acts of media reception.”

The rise in popularity of blogging has steadily increased throughout out 2000′s allowing individual commentaries to express their own options to the global and online world. Our team presentation looked at the ideas and motivations behind such blogs and why the popularity of them is continuous. Ideas included the ability to express ones opinions and beliefs and providing an outlet (whether public or private) to do so. Another idea explored is the sense of community and networks created through the interactions. Gone are the days where you need to be in the same room as someone to converse and expand upon thoughts and ideas, we now have access to the world.. all at our fingertips. Like-minded people can now ‘meet’ whenever and discuss topics that interest them, as opposed to what ever is physically in front of us. The other aspect of blogs and blogging practices is the monetisation of the movement. By promotion, advertising & sponsorship, blogging is now becoming a career. Companies now use the popularity of this medium to advertise, cross-promote and engage with audiences through the popular medium.

Blogs satisfy the basic human desire to be heard and to have an audience. Blogs are mediums for the masses, they give a voice to countless of the previously unheard and the micro cultures of news, politics, business and opinion.

Week 3.

Platform Case Study: Reddit

Week 3 looked at different digital media platforms.

Twitter, Instagram, Facebook & Snapchat (the list can go on and on.. ) are more apart of our every day life than ever before. The design of such platforms continuously generates usage across the globe, in many different ways.

“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.” (Don Norman, as cited in Affordances Interaction-Design.org 2011)

The dangers of some of these platforms are the addictions they create within our society, explored in an insightful article, here: http://www.timewellspent.io/

Accessibility to these platforms has changed the way we communicate. But it is up to us to decide just how much they infiltrate our lives.

Week 2

Social Theory & Social Media.

This week we explored the idea of Community, Society & Social Capitol. With Siapera (2012) looking at the definitions of Community being formed around a natural, organic will & includes all the associations in which we partake out of our own choice and volition, while member- ship is self-fulfilling: friendships, neighbourhood groups, voluntary organizations, families and so on are examples of communities. Society is formed on the basis of rational will, and membership takes the form of an instrumental association, that leads to certain goals: for example, membership in a city or state as citizens (rights, protection etc.), or in private companies (profit etc.).

Putnam (1995) has explored the idea that our social capitol is diminishing with the rise of the new-media world. He explains that (using the metaphor of bowling) ‘Although more Americans are bowling, he says, less of them are bowling in leagues - this for Putnam shows the degree of social disengagement in the USA and more broadly in Western soci- eties. The result is a society that is not much more than a collection of individuals, meeting and socializing occasionally but who do not share any strong bonds or any sense of common purpose.’

On personal reflection, i’ve noticed myself stuck in the ‘vortex’ of online social media and networks as opposed to spending more time socialising in the ‘physical’ sense. So this year in particular, i have been making an increasing effort to get ‘out’ and participate in social activities with my friends. On the flipside, having access to the world at my hand has enabled me to continue regular contact with some of my closest friends as they have moved away from being in close physical proximity. Am i opposed or ‘for’ the new age of accessibility.. I’m both. I have concerns about the growing technological advancements and what it means to daily social interactions, but i cannot argue with the joy it brings in being able to reach some of my best friends in an instant.

Week 1.

An introduction to digital communities & Social Media Platforms.

This week looked at the ‘WHAT’ of social media & digital communities.

The criticism of the digital world is explored through the TED talk by Sherry Turkle 'Connected, but alone' https://youtu.be/rv0g8TsnA6c And discusses her concerns about people becoming connected only through technology, and therefore disconnected from their inner and outer lives and personal real-world contexts.

In reflection, it’s an idea i’ve been exploring throughout the past year. Why do i open up my phone to ‘escape’ everytime i feel ‘alone’ or ‘anxious’ in a situation. The accessibility to escape reality is easy, and the inability to switch off is becoming an even harder task. I’ve been playing games with myself. Checking social media (for me, mainly Instagram & Facebook) becomes a habit. And just like any bad habit... I have to train and trick myself out of it!

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