ā¢ What does it mean to network using social media?
Networking on social media means connecting with like-minded people and exchanging information with one another. An example of networking might be connecting with a professional in oneās desired field on social media sites like LinkedIn or Twitter. Connecting with this person opens a line of communication that can be used to further career prospects, share relevant content, or simply start a friendship. Overall, networking means actively seeking out people with whom one shares similar interests and goals.
ā¢ How are we motivated to participate in networked publics?
The main motivations to participate in networked publics are to learn and to further oneās brand. Learning from a networked public is easy due to social mediaās curation of content. For instance, if one follows authoritative figures in topics about which they are interested, their news feed will be filled the latest updates about what is going on in a given field. When used properly, networks can become a key source of learning and information. Additionally, public networks allow people to cultivate their own brand. When one connects with a person on social media, their profile might be recommended to that personās friends and contacts. Thus, befriending people on social media opens the door for even more relationships with people that share common interests, which allows one to carve out their own brand.
ā¢ What are the risks & rewards of public communications?
The biggest reward of public communication is the opportunity to network with like-minded peers. As previously mentioned, networking with people in oneās industry can allow one to learn and grow oneās own brand within a field. However, the downside public communication is that one might not always be received favorably. For example, if someone posts controversial content on their social media page, it could alienate them from others in their field and make them less employable. Because information online can stay there forever, it is very important to be careful about what one posts.
Digital Identity
ā¢ What is a digital identity?
A digital identity is the image one cultivates online. Oneās identity is shaped by the content one posts, shares, or engages with. It can be viewed as oneās āfootprintā on the web. Every time someone posts something, it becomes accessible to both the people inside and outside of oneās network. It is important to be mindful of oneās digital identity when choosing how to interact with others online.
ā¢ How do personal versus professional approaches to digital identity affect social media use?
When creating a digital identity, one can use a personal or professional approach. A personal approach to digital identity means sharing some of the more intimate details of oneās life online. For example, someone with a personal identity might share pictures of their kids, or updates about their marriage or career. This approach makes oneās digital identity feel more real, as if they are communicating with their friends and family online. On the other hand, a professional approach to digital identity is more detached. Someone who with a professional digital identity might share things like recent news articles or inspirational quotes. This type of identity is more detached than a personal one.
ā¢ How do digital identities converge in networked publics ā what are the impacts and/or benefits?
In networked publics, personal and professional digital identities often converge. For example, a personās Facebook network may consist of relatives, colleagues, and friends from school. Thus, it would be inappropriate to have an entirely personal or professional digital identity in this context because oneās network contains many different links. The benefit of having such a wide network is that oneās life can be filtered into a single social media profile. Yet the downside is that one often experiences conflicts between their personal and professional identity.
Reference
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/learning-network-age/0/steps/24644
https://www.shiftelearning.com/blog/personal-learning-networks
https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/3559/3131
https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society/article/view/networked
Thank you for sharing, it is a very good blog! From your sharing, I know that online public can better promote everyone’s communication and establish better connections with different people, but at the same time there are risks. Thank you for your content, which has deepened my understanding of online public and made it more detailed.
Hi Chloe,
I like your post. I agree with what you think on the pros and cons of public communications. It is great to have opportunities to discuss and share thoughts with mindful peers. Inappropriate comments will indeed alienate people from others. In addition, arguing on the internet is inevitable. Therefore, when I think about the downside of public online discussion, I usually focus more on viral violence.
I also have a similar idea to you on digital identities. Digital identities help the big data to match people with a group having similar thoughts. It also helps organizations target customers. Thus, just like what you said, the data is precious and beneficial to the personal learning industries.
This is a good blog that gives me a clearer understanding of using social media networks. They can communicate with people around the world more easily and can find like-minded people and share things with others. The public can use the networks to learn and promote their brands. And public communication is rewarding, as mentioned before, to recommend yourself around the world and get opportunities, but public communication also has risks, because you can’t tell whether it’s true or not on the networks, so there will be a lot of controversies, and you may be alienated.
Hi Chloe
Public communication benefits many people and helps people maintain safe social distancing during the pandemic without becoming alienated. But the benefit at the same time also can bring some risk, I think the invasion of privacy is one of the biggest drawbacks of public communication, now no matter what social platforms require mailbox, phone, and other personal information, when you enter this information, over a period there will be a great probability received fraud phone, this was the result of public communication to privacy. Digital identity, as we call it, is a way of filling our personality and presenting ourselves so that others can get to know us .
Hello Chloe,
I’m glad to see your definition of social media in your blog. You mentioned that people can find people with the same interests through social media. I agree with this view. I think because of the pandemic, many people avoid offline activities, which means they reduce a lot of opportunities to make new friends. I think the emergence of social media provides people more opportunities to make friends.
Yuqing Wang
Hi Chole, People’s behavior is infinitely magnified in the digital space, and each of us can be a public figure, which means that we need to restrict our behavior in the digital space. I agree with that. Nowadays, more and more people are accessing digital space and using social software. People should strengthen their own knowledge learning and moral education, especially teenagers. This can effectively prevent the spread of some negative effects.
Hi Chloe! You explain the digital identity very clear and specific! Digital identity has two sides, one positive side is it makes people’s life more convenient and efficiency, especially during the covid pandemic. On the other hand, the negative side will be people’s identity information can be easily stolen, for example, I can always receive some telephone fraud after I bought something on the internet says you have a package has arrived but no one come and pick it so they can easily use your anxious mentality to get your personal information and fraud you to pay.