Assignment: text, tweet, blog …

Digital media are bringing change to all aspect of the modern-western people’s lives. Immune is not even the academic sphere. Digital media is influencing education and teaching processes by the day. While incorporation of digital media into educational methods and processes brings many positive changes and improvements, it also causes difficulties and problems.  Below are listed few of the pros and cons of the use of social media in classroom that I find are worth considering.

PROS

• visibility of the work

Everything students publish online is visible, searchable and stored. This most often encourages students to really fully engage in the work and develop deeper understanding of the topic they are dealing with. Awareness of the fact that your work is seen to everyone, even your potential employers, works, as David Silver argues in his article, as a good motivation for students and their studying.

• collaboration

Engagement of digital media in the classroom not only enables collaboration among the students and professors in the class but also collaboration among broader and more diverse range of people (students and professors  from abroad, different cultures, backgrounds). Cross-institutional collaboration is not invention of digital media and its use in the classroom but, as David Silver concludes in his article, it surely is made much easier with tools offered in digital media.

• overcoming time and space barriers 

Digital media are making distance learning much more easy. Anne Nelson in her article gives different attempts, more or less successful, of adoption of digital media for distance learning. Engagement of digital media can make distant learning more effective and easily conducted. Beside making the mere act of conducting the lessons much easier, digital media also enable better, easier and quicker access to literature, scholarly article, etc. to students in less developed countries.

CONS

• diversion of attention 

Students using digital media in class (e.g. computers, mobile phones, etc.) usually don’t fully pay attention to what is going on in the class and what professor is saying. There are so many distractions on social media that student’s’ attention quickly gets diverse. Use of social media hereby doesn’t aid to the learning process but instead disables it.

• technical limitations

Before digital media can really be successfully incorporated to the learning process several technical requirements need to be met. But this is often difficult and expensive to assure. Adoption of digital media thus often doesn’t get fully realized.

• failing to make use of digital media really relevant

Digital media in classroom are often misused or their use isn’t really thought through and therefore inadequate and ineffective. Before social media with different related applications are used in classroom, relevant, effective and useful applications should be developed and tested to really add value to the learning process.

OpenNet Initiative Global Internet Filtering maps

OpenNet Initiative on its site provides interesting interactive maps showing which countries worldwide are censoring/blocking internet access, social media sites and YouTube access. To see these sites click on the following links:

• to see Global Internet Filtering Map

• to see Social Media Filtering Map

• to see YouTube Censored: A Recent History map.

Thoughts on online communities …

While reading articles for this week’s class and thinking about the concept of (virtual) communities I began to realize that many online communities we join are just an extension of our real world communities. This is especially common when it comes to communities of common interest.

I encountered several different such communities during my student years, especially during the time of my student exchange. One of my professors was very technology savvy and one of his research fields were social media. Not surprisingly, we  had to use several different social media in one of the classes he taught. We even created our own virtual community with the use of Ning platform. The site we created worked as a place where students collaborated among each other, posted assignments, blogs, events, photos, etc. Beside this site, professor created another site, dedicated to professionals, academics, students and all others interested in social media. The site works similarly as the site we used in class – its users enables to collaborate among themselves, share content, post events, etc.

 

 

I was required to join these two online communities because they were part of my academic life. So I extended my real, offline community I belonged to as a student, to online environment and community. I believe similarly works also many other communities – our offline and online worlds are so intertwined nowadays that it’s hard to make clear distinction when on starts and the other ends. So also many of our online activities, which result in joining certain online community, reflect or present just an extension of our offline world.

Verbal and nonverbal communication

Reading the articles for this week’s class made me think about the personality and identity traces we leave on social media. Everything we do on social media can give away some information on who we are and what our personality looks like. Even if we intentionally don’t fill in the section about our personal information, interests etc. others still can create more or less accurate impression about us.

It’s pretty much the same as it is in the real, offline world – we try to make the best possible impression by carefully choosing the words to say what we want to say and information we plan to reveal. But at the same time our nonverbal communication gives away much more than we think and even wish to. The way we stand, gesticulate, the pitch of our voice, the way we are dressed etc. may communicate much more than the words we use. And despite all the effort we put into formulation of the sentences we may not achieve the desired effect/impression on the other side.

Similarly works also our communication within social media. Despite the opportunities it gives us for creating the self-representation that is in accordance with what we want others to think about us the ‘nonverbal’ cues can ruin our efforts. Even if we don’t explicitly give much information about who we are and what we are like, our behaviour on social media gives others hints on what we are like. The mere choice of social media we use itself gives away some information or background about us – if we use social media primarily intended for students we are most likely students etc. The way we use functions and application offered on social media is another way of getting cues of someone’s personality. The number of friends and who they are give away another part of what the user might be like. Even more revealing are photos we publish – these can reveal not only who we are but also what we are like, where we live, who we hang out with and other personal information.

No matter how hard we try to crate fake or idealised presentation of ourselves on social media the ‘nonverbal’ cues can ruin our efforts. If we are not consistent with the intended self-representation in all our actions on social media it can quickly be ruined. So also in communication on social media the role in self-representation plays both kinds of communication – ‘verbal’ and ‘nonverbal’.

Japanese earthquake and reactions to it on social media

One of the most talked about issues these days is Friday’s devastating earthquake and its consequences. Social media are not an exception – recent events in Japan are one of the most common issues mentioned on these sites. I found an interesting article on Mashable about how Facebook users reacted to the news about the earthquake and events happening afterwards.

As the article states, on March 11 there have been 4.5 million status updates from 3.8 million users from all around the world including words ‘Japan’, ‘earthquake’ or ‘tsunami’. On the site is also an interesting animation showing the map of the world and animation on when and where postings about Japanese natural disaster were published. Beside being the platform for sharing the most recent news and reports on the events, expressing condolence and sympathies with the affected, was Facebook also among the quickest tools to use to get in touch with people in the areas affected by the natural disaster.

Source: mashable.com

 

Also days after the earthquake many posts on Facebook include Japan and topic’s related to it. Beside the above-mentioned reasons people now use Facebook also for making donations for the people in devastated areas.

Similar situation was also on Twitter where reaction the earthquake was immediate and rapidly trending – not only around the world but also in Japan. There have been around 1200 tweets per minute coming from Tokio. Twitter played even more important role – in the published tweets were posted estimated times of when the tsunami was about to hit the US coast. The estimations were published even before the official government warning was released.

In the event of the Japanese earthquake social media played prominent role – not only for sharing news and reports on what is going on in Japan, but also for getting in touch with people affected by the disaster after phone system knocked down. And they may play even greater role in following what is going on these days and the following days after the consequences of the earthquake are still about to reveal. General public worldwide seems to be doubting whether official governmental reports and reports coming from the nuclear plants are true and honest therefore they might trust more postings on social media coming from people being in the middle of happening.

Facebook, revolutions and traditional media

Yesterday I read a comment from Sandra Bašić Hrvatin on Facebook and its role in revolutions in Africa. The topic and her comment closely relates to one of the issues we had the last week in the class online discussion. As Ms Bašić Hrvatin points, Facebook, nonetheless its clear effectiveness in spreading the word and mobilizing people to join revolutionary movements, shouldn’t be glorified. Facebook is, as Ms Bašić Hrvatin states, only a technology and revolutions are not started by technologies but people using these technologies. To this or at least similar point came also our last week’s discussion. New media are only tools. But how these tools are used and for what purposes, is up to the person controlling and using them. My point is that we shouldn’t understand new media as something omnipotent but look at them with a critical eye and transfer this criticism also to our usage.

Another interesting point in the abovementioned comment is, how traditional media portray only one interest – the interest of their owners, the capital controlling them – and Facebook offers platform for expressing wide range of interests and images. Basically any Facebook user can portray his/her own perspective on world and interpretation of current events. And this enabled nations in oppressed countries to see different picture of current situation than is presented in traditional media.

Even though I agree that this is a positive side of Facebook and other similar social media, it still doesn’t allow large segment of people to portray their own reality because they don’t have access to technology or required knowledge/skills to use them. So despite offering possibilities to participate in reporting on current events and situation, also new media perform some sort of gatekeeping, which may not necessarily be their own fault. Inaccessibility of technological infrastructure and certain degree of knowledge and skills required to use these tools still leaves out vast segment of people.

 

Here I go again

It was a bit of a Deja vu when I read the syllabus for the seminar New Media and Society. As a part of our final grade, students are required to start writing a blog, which was also one of the assignments we had to do for the Social Media class I took when I studied at Oklahoma State University as an exchange student. This seemed like a great, if not perfect, opportunity to revive the blog I was writing. Considering that the topics of both blogs are related, I decide not to start a new blog but to continue with the one I started two years ago.

I got my Bachelor’s degree in Media and Communication Studies and I’m currently a postgraduate student in the program Strategic marketing. I find new media and all different options they offer interesting thus I decided to attend New Media and Society seminar. I’m also planning to write my Master’s thesis in connection with new media (social media) and its strategic use in marketing/PR/advertising and this seminar may provide many useful information and knowledge.

Before taking Social Media class, I was using some social network sites (mostly Facebook), instant communication tools (Skype, MSN) and digital libraries for my personal purposes and never thought of this tools as something that can be usefully applied to professional or academic sphere. I became more acquainted with other tools offered in digital communication environments during the before-mentioned class, where we were required to use Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, delicious, Flickr etc. We also used Wikis and Ning platform on which we created site for purposes of the class work.

Knowledge is a way for better and easier usage of the new tools that digital world is offering therefore I hope to learn many useful things during this course.

Press Release Evolution

In the 24/7 news cycle, tempo moves quickly and information overload occurs regularly. As such, PR practitioners need to do their best to get a reporter’s attention. The story in the press release needs to be not only great but perfect to have any chance of being picked up from the huge pile of press releases waiting each day. Following standardized format and providing interesting, timely and newsworthy information is a must when writing press releases.

Writing a press release is not a creative writing assignment. This doesn’t mean you should not use creativity in your writing, it simply means the whole process of preparing the press release is well thought and strategically planned. In this way, writers can make sure their press release is targeted, short, to the point and supports the client’s objectives.
But following all the rules is still no guarantee that your press release will actually become a story or even be read. Up to 97 percent of all press releases sent to the media are never used. Reasons for failure vary but one of them is certainly failing to catch reporter’s attention and make him want to write a story you pitched.

Wouldn’t it be great if you as a PR person had not only written words to grab the reporter’s attention but also supporting material like photos, videos and links? Incorporating all these features in the press release and making it interactive would make press releases more interesting and provide reporters with additional information that would make the story-writing process easier. And this huge step in press release evolution is already happening with the development of the social media press release.

Social media releases give writers opportunities to more effectively reach their audiences by providing them information that really matters to them and, more importantly, in a way they are used to digesting it. With the integration of resource links, videos, images, RSS feeds, graphics and MP3 or podcast links, you can tailor the message in a way that fits your audience exactly. (To see the SMR template click here).
Besides additional information, the social media release also encourages transparency, engagement and respect. What better way to show the world that PR is not synonym for deception than practicing transparency and engagement everywhere, including press releases?

Social media press releases were not created to completely replace traditional press releases. SMRs are merely the next step in the press release evolution; it’s a way to complement traditional press releases and make communication more effective. Even though the format of SMRs differs from the traditional press release in many ways, traditional skills for writing press release are still relevant. Proper grammar, spelling and punctuation are still the basis, whether you are writing traditional or social media releases.
I would encourage everyone who wants to learn more about the social media release, its development and benefits to visit Brian Solis’s blog. He is one of the social media release developers and has some great posts that can provide insight to the SMR:

– Social Media Releases – Everything You Ever Wanted to (or Should) Know
– The Definite Guide to Social Media Releases
– How to Write a Social Media Press Release, Why, and What It All Means
– How To Write a Social Media Press Release – Part II

Even though the social media release is still evolving and trying to find its place under the PR sun, everyone in the field should at least familiarize themselves with the concept.
If you are a PR student and not familiar with SMRs, do some research- knowing it might be your major advantage in your job search.
If you are a longtime PR practitioner and not familiar with SMRs, do some research- it will help you keep on track with the changing technology and current trends, or it may help you keep your job.
If you just started your first PR job and you’re not familiar with SMR, again, do research- it may help you gain co-workers’ respect or get a promotion.
Lastly, if you are a PR professor and not familiar with the social media release, research- it will help you keep on track with new technology and trends and enable you to give students the most current insight to the PR business.

Can you hear me?

There is so much going on on the Twitter. Hundreds, no, thousand and thousands of people are tweeting on more or less regular basis. Some of them are so regular, that you can see their new tweets every minute if not every few seconds. And all this can be a bit overwhelming at the times.

Sometimes I feel like I’m standing in a huge room full of people and everyone is shouting all over the place. Some are shouting random thoughts coming through their minds, some are talking about their current activities, others are answering someone’s questions or replying to someone’s tweet. And I’m standing in the middle of the room, trying to get the best out of all this noises I’m hearing. And often seems like the best way to do is just simply turn around and walk away.

All this talking that is occurring on the Twitter and other social media makes me wonder how successful is your message in reaching others in all this clutter. It  seems almost like you and your message need to be at the right place at the right time to be heard; otherwise it is just one more shout in the crowd.It’s kind of a lottery – if you have luck, someone will hear you and your message will be effective. Otherwise – better luck next time.

Can you imagine how many tweets per minute gets someone who is following 1000 people? I would dare to say that the percentage of the messages this person really sees is very low. So, where is the point of following as many people as you can if you almost never see or hear what they say? Wouldn’t be better to choose few people to follow? Few people that you know, or at least assume, might have to say something you could be interested in?

I certainly agree that in Twitter quality should be more important than quantity. Especially because there are hash tags you can search for. You can find all kinds of tweets about the topic you are interested in by doing that. There are still lots and lots of tweets but at least you know you are looking at the right place for you topic of interest.

Pay it Forward

Have you seen the movie Pay it forward? If you haven’t – the movie talks about a 12-year-old boy who needs to come up with an idea of how to change the world and make it a better place as a part of his school project. And he comes up with the winning idea. He will help three people, and they will have to help other three people instead of giving him something in return, etc. Such a simple idea. And such an Utopian idea at the same time. Of course it works in the movie – it’s a movie, anything can work in the movie. But could it work in real life? Could it work in social media communities?

People have brains, but we have emotions and passions, too. And when we are passionate about something, we just want to do it. For fun. For free. For ourselves and for others. Besides, we are altruistic by nature; at least I like to think so. And there are so many passionate and altruistic people in social media communities. They are willing to help you – provide an answer to your question, give you an advice, etc. They do it because they want to do it, not because they expect something in return. And they don’t help only three people; when they see the problem they might have solution for, they offer it.  But this should not be a one-way ride. As a member of any community, also social media one, you should give, too. Not just take. Be happy and grateful when someone helps you but don’t hesitate or be afraid of helping either. Because your idea might be just what someone is looking for.

So, when someone does you a favor, replies to your questions, helps you in one way or another, don’t pay it back (btw, you should thank). Pay it  forward.