Post 1: Intro to Social Media

     Social Media is defined by online sources and forums that allow others to talk to and discuss with other people anywhere in the world about any topic they choose. The videos we watched were all very interesting and do a really great job of describing the influences and the intensity of social media. I always knew that social media had influencers and that ads were used heavily on social media platforms, but I had never really thought about how big of a role these things played in social media. I have never even thought until now about how big a role social media plays in my own life. 

    In the Social Media Revolution video, there were so many interesting facts about how videos would make up most of the internet, how 25 million people in 45 different countries have access and use social media, and my favorite fact was how the biggest demographic on twitter is grandparents. There is a quote at the beginning that says "We don't have a choice whether we do social media, the choice is how well we do it." This was something I had to think about for a moment because I thought we definitely have a choice on whether we use social media or not until I realized that there are times where I had started using certain platforms because of the pressure behind using them, or that there are times in life that require you use social media to get news out or talk to people. 

    The textbook mentions that email is considered a form of social media. My dad always says that he doesn't use social media, but because of email he does, and email is something that no business, employee, school, or regular person can go without because of the demands of having an email to create accounts and easily correspond to others.

    In the Splash video, I found it amazing how much influence people can have on a topic. The fact that a bunch of people would vote for Mister Splashy Pants to become the name of an organization to help whales is something that could only happen on the internet. This also goes to show how social media can be used to make a difference that may not have been possible without the large audiences that social media can provide.