What Does ‘Social Media’ Mean To You?
A while ago I set out with a friendly face and additional one-member camera crew to ask random people in Seattle what “social media” meant to them. The purpose was to retrieve common sentiment regarding this popular phrase and improve my finesse with talking to strangers.
What struck me was that out of the 21 people who answered (9 short of a statistically significant sample size but my video-grapher was tired of following me around), a majority did not mention Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube. Instead, most interviewees used such personal deductive reasoning as:
“Well, social means group, not private, so the group? And media means newspapers and magazines and TV so magazines and reality shows?”
Perhaps. Social Media doesn’t yet seem to have the kind of ubiquitous definition as say, a fork. And that could be a reminder of how new and constantly evolving “social media” is – as well as, more importantly, how its purpose can be so indefinitely customized. Unlike a fork.
What was more interesting to me was that the teenagers I questioned were either dumbfounded or cynical. The former of which made me nervous, the latter suspicious.
For example, one young man in his late teens responded with a tirade about how social media was owned by 10 percent of major corporations which dictate what we wear and who we talk to and what we think.
“I follow my own social norms,” he said. He waved around a Smartphone during this passionate spiel, citing the “higher powers” he refused to succumb to. The higher powers of Apple? Cell towers? Yahweh?
Similarly, an eloquent but bitter street vendor selling his hand-bound journals glanced periodically at his cell phone while condemning the “popular interests” were “guided by Barnes and Noble” and its corporate counterparts.
While a charming middle-aged mom proudly asserted her relative fame on Facebook, most people were downright apologetic and or embarrassed about their use of social networking sites and mediums.
What was most interesting to me was how nearly everyone commented on the need for “face-to-face” interaction with regard to meeting and connecting with people. It seemed like they actually preferred this “old school” (as one man described it) method of engagement.
Are we just not aware that we’re using social media or are we in denial? I wonder which is more likely to hinder personal engagement efforts?
Similar Posts:
- In Defense of Social Media
- Weekly Hot Hits in Global Development 10/5-10/9!
- Social Media Works As Marketing Tool (When Properly Understood)
