Mass Media and Society

Chapter 11: The Internet

and Social Media

Feb. 26, 2014

The Internetand Social Media

• The Internet’s evolution• Social media and Web 2.0• Effects on popular culture,

interpersonal communication

• Issues and trends

Evolution of the Internet

• Began as a military-only network

• Decentralized: information transferred via protocols that let any computer communicate with another

• Distributed network (web)

Browser history• AOL: proprietary service;

incorporated chat rooms, instant messaging

• Early browsers: Mosaic, Netscape Navigator

• Internet Explorer, pre-loaded with Windows, grew dominant

Browsers today• Chrome (Google): 34%• Internet Explorer

(Microsoft): 20%• Firefox (Mozilla): 18%• Safari (Apple): 18%• Percentages vary by

source

Social media• Social networking services

provide limited, public platform for “profile”

• Provide ways for people to connect with each other

• Social media: blanket term for person-to-person connections on the Internet

Social media• Facebook• Twitter• Instagram• LinkedIn• YouTube• Blogs• Other sites/services

Going viral• Rapid sharing of content• Viral marketing: Attempt

to produce content that “goes viral” to build hype for a product

• “You Are What You Tweet”: sharing tied to virtual identity

Use of social media

• Sharing, crowdsourcing of news and information

• Communication, conversation, social change

• Multitasking• “Free” marketing• Commerce• Privacy

Effects on culture, communication

• Internet drives globalization

• Lowers economic, cultural barriers to communication

• Contributes to export and import of popular culture

New media• Traditional media outlets

use Twitter as aggregator for viewers/consumers

• New media spring from traditional (Politico)

• Vice Magazine as media model: Corporate partners

• Traditional media use new media (“SNL”)

Social alienation• “Internet Paradox”:

Supposed social service of the Internet is actually making children antisocial

• Counterpoint: College-age Facebook users connected with “real” friends twice as often

Digital divide• Academic benefits of digital

media may exclude low-performing children in low-income homes

• About 70% of people with annual income below $20,000 use the Internet regularly (upper-income population Internet use is 96%-plus)

Digital divide• Reasons people don’t use the

Internet:• Not interested: 21%• Don’t have computer: 13%• Too difficult/frustrating: 10%• Don’t know how/lack skills: 8%• Lack access: 7%• Too expensive: 6%• Physically unable: 4%