Blog Post 6 - Visual Communities and Social Imaging
Social imaging is a personal thing. Plenty of people are confident in sharing photos of themselves for the world to see, sometimes in compromising positions. It makes sense then that social media ‘tagging’ could result in conflict. There are many times when a person’s privacy may be compromised and even their reputation affected by things their friends may share about them on social media. It is also no secret that bosses and potential employers use social media sites to weed out employees they feel aren't the 'right fit’ for an organisation. This is interesting in that such a new internet tool is considered just as important as the traditional resume and interview in recruitment nowadays (Hill 2012). While some people can be diligent in their online profile privacy settings, many are not and this is bound to result in tension and conflict. Think about a teen who has lied to their parents about going to a party, or a friend who has told another she is busy, but then gets tagged at the party. This invasion and loss of privacy has many implications on social media users who value their relative anonymity. As well as this, when someone shares photos of themselves, especially photos that could be considered ‘risky’, they can sometimes risk long term consequences, some of which we touched on in the bullying and trolling post.
While I use social media to organise events and to chat with people and share jokes and articles, I very rarely share videos or photographs that I have taken, none that aren't just of my two pet dogs anyway. This is mostly for two reasons - I never think to take photos and videos of my life, an attitude that I attribute to being a natural 'late adopter', and being terribly, ridiculously un-photogenic.
As mentioned in the week nine materials, (Jones 2014) Snapchat has changed the way we share digital media in that it makes the leap from digital imaging as self expression (pictures on which people will comment and like) to digital media as a communication tool. It offers a conversation through pictures with text, usually in a one-on-one conversation. Quoted in the materials, Speigel states: 'Snapchat wants to overcome the self-consciousness many people feel before a camera, and the discomfort we might have with a personal image being stored, copied and shared without our knowledge or control'. The problem with this though, is that even though Snapchat quickly erases the conversation, smartphones are able to store the image of the screen like a regular photo, so depending on the actions of the receiver, the photos are not always deleted. This has ended in heartbreaking outcomes for many young people, generally after 'sexting' which again ties into the post on bullying and trolling. (Inbar 2003)
Visual media and social imaging practices are forever being used in different ways to achieve different outcomes, depending on the poster. Images are essential in blogging for visual attractiveness and to avoid copyright issues. A travel blogger might post selfies of themselves on their travels, as would a 'mummy blogger' or fashion blogger.
In politics, candidates need to use social media and 'selfies' to be seen to be 'real' and 'getting out there' (REF). Think of the pictures of the Prime Minister with his family and other candidates with children, nurses, animals, or whatever their policies are about. Sometimes of course, politicians can share a little too much on social media and the 'selfies' are a little too close for comfort, as the picture below can attest. (AAP 2013)
Much of digital activism and protest requires a 'selfie' in order for the audience to 'feel' for the activist, to stir up emotion and to encourage a human response to the activists plight. An example of this is the following Change.org petition to get shopping trolleys for special needs people introduce. And it worked! (Wilton 2015)
Selfies also play a huge part in the issue of trolling and social media conflict, and at times can be the trigger behind it. Seeking approval on one's looks from strangers has never been a good idea, but it is still a very popular trend among young people, sometimes with tragic consequences, as in the case of 14 year old Hanna Smith in the following article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/10261422/Selfie-photographs-trend-puts-children-at-risk-of-abuse.html (Silverman 2013)
However we feel about selfies it looks like they are here to stay, with the recent invention and popularity of the 'selfie stick' (an apparatus designed to make it easier to take them) proving people just can't get enough of themselves.
AAP 2013, [image] 'Kevin Rudd Cuts Himself Shaving', Yahoo News, 10 July, viewed 3 February 2015, <https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/17940494/kevin-rudd-cuts-himself-shaving/>.
Facebook 2014, [image] Ruth Birch Photos, Facebook, 9 February, Facebook, viewed 5 February 2015, <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152228548529120&set=pb.606864119.-2207520000.1423113937.&type=3&theater>.
Hill 2012, 'Facebook can tell you if a person is worth hiring', Forbes, 5 March, viewed 3 February 2015, <http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/2 03/05/facebook-can-tell-you-if-a-person-is-worth-hiring/>.
Jones, L 2104, 'Lecture 9', Digital Communities, Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, viewed 3 February 2015.
Inbar 2009, 'Sexting bullying cited in teen's suicide', Today, 2 December, viewed 3 February 2015, <http://www.today.com/id/34236377/ns/today-today_news/t/sexting-bullying-cited-teens-suicide/#.VNNBuJ2UdaQ>.
Silverman 2013, 'Selfie photographs trend puts children at risk of abuse' 23 August, viewed 3 February 2015, <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/10261422/Selfie-photographs-trend-puts-children-at-risk-of-abuse.html>
Wilton 2015, 'Coles begins by implementing special needs trolleys in 300 stores!', Change.org, 29 Jan, viewed 3 Feb 2015, <https://www.change.org/p/coles-and-woolworths-please-implement-special-needs-trolleys-throughout-all-your-stores/u/9455141>.
