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Social Media: Can be a wonderful tool, but be careful! By: Whitney Curtis
04 Feb 2009 by wcurtis / No Comments
Over the past few weeks our class has engaged in several discussions about the rising impact of social media. As many of us know, social media is more popular today than ever before. It is the home to an ever-growing and changing online community. There are a variety of advantages to using social media. For starters, it is a great way to receive a diverse amount of information. Social media broadens horizons which the mainstream media have no control over. For example, Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter are are open forums where people can express themselves and their opinions however they please. Social media is also a great way to broaden one’s network and connect with a large amount of people. For example, social media is a fantastic way to advertise to niche audiences as well as spread aware and create support around an issue. A primary example of this was seen last week when AT&T utilized their Facebook pages to stream Lil Wayne’s new single. AT&T was able to generate support through emails and text messages which created buzz and drove consumers to their Facebook pages. The result was a success driving a younger audience, who was their target, to AT&T’s facebook page, connecting Lil’ Wayne to their brand. Networking opportunities are also found through social media as well as the blossoming of relationships between people who may have never known each other.
Although there are clearly many advantages to using and exploring social media, it is important to understand and be aware that there are also innumerable disadvantages of social media. Many critics of social media argue that oftentimes, information can be misinterpreted and messages can be skewed. Because anyone can take part in social media and post on a blog, Web sites and blogs will become cluttered with excesses of information which can be inaccurate and negative. There is also a lack of security and protection on many social media Web sites so things can easily get out of control. However, regardless of the positive or negative aspects of social media, one thing is for sure and that is that it is an increasingly popular and innovative industry. Consequently, visitors to social media Web sites and blogs should be careful when reading and posting information. Consumers and contributors should always be cautious because frequently mistakes and falsehoods are written in addition to the fact that once it’s up it is for everybody’s eyes, and this should not be taken lightly.
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