Emma Kostro

UWRT 1104

What Does Social Media Mean for Face to Face Social Interaction?

I.
Today, social media is a term recognized by many. Social media refers to networking that
allows people to share and create content, as well as interact with each other. Throughout every
part of the world, people are able to form some type of connection with the word Facebook or
Twitter. Surprisingly, these websites have not always been familiar. Social media sites as we
know them today have not always been as commonly used, for social media itself has been in
existence around a relatively short amount of time. Many could not imagine living without instant messaging, sharing photos, or creating forums; but, throughout the last few decades everyone did. Technological advances within the internet allowed the initiation of social media, and
ever since then networking has never been the same.
In the year 1997, the first social media website Six Degrees by Andrew Weinreich was
created. This was the first known website that allowed users to connect with other people
through the world wide web. Side bar chatting and messaging publicly back and forth became
the new fad. This website sparked the entire social media epidemic, and introduced even more
social media platforms to grow. In 2004, Mark Zuckerberg launched a social media website
called Facebook, which set the bar for other social media sites. Zuckerberg created this site so
that people would have an easier portal to connect with people. The navigation within Facebook
was incredibly simple and convenient to any user. This is what allowed this site to skyrocket in
users compared to Six Degrees. Twitter was then created in 2006 by Jack Dorsey to condense the
Facebook site into just statuses. Dorsey wanted this site to appeal to users because of its ability
to communicate with a small group of people. People have incredibly easy access to read, discover, and share information. It allows the social interaction throughout people to jump to the
next level, and that is why it has become so popular. Customers can create their own interactive
data base, share information with others, and create communities in which people with the
same interests can talk. Twitter has become one of the biggest competitor in social media platforms in the world right now, but is no match for Facebook which has collected more revenue
than Twitter ever has. There are endless possibilities when it comes to social media. This technology that has been given to us allows us to interact with people from all over the world, and
gain new friends and opportunities. With that, comes the growth of culture, business, and the
world at large. The seek for new job opportunities or a chance to travel the world could all be
accomplished by simply logging on to your Facebook account. You are able to then search, scan,
navigate your way through the world.
We then come to the conclusion that these many forums created on social media websites
have an impact on politics, business, and socialization. Because these are the most well discussed
topics on the planet, social media magnifies them throughout the world. Politics take part in social media because they serve as an advertisement forum to the many different political parties.

People can create polls, forums, and even campaigns to rally people for a cause. This could lead
to mass movements and eventually cause a change in our political system. The impact on business within social media is obvious, for it could be used to advertise specific products, build loyalty within customers, and strategize their selling. It could also impact society negatively, due to
the fact of so many users being subject to the advertisements. People may end up receiving many
jobs, causing an increase in unemployment just through social media job recruitment. Lastly, the
effect on socialization within the media is tremendous. We as humans have now entered a century that could communicate with just a click at our fingertips. Society has the ability to reconnect
with old friends, make new ones, share ideas and photos, and trade ideas. We can collaborate
with almost anything. With that being said, we will continue to be in a world where social media
thrives. As social media continues to grow, it offers more and more opportunities for people, and
ultimately the world.

II.
The two people who I have chosen to interview are my friends Abigail Doerrmann (age
17) and Emily Woodrich (age 21). Abigail has been an avid user of social media since she was a
child, and is currently studying computer technology. Emily works for a web design business and
is creating online sites/examining the aspects of social media everyday.

Explain the benefits that you have found out of using social media regarding the way
you speak to people in person? Or do you not find anything beneficial out of it?
Abigail Doerrmann: I have found that social media does allow you to get to know
people before you meet them, which can be good and bad. You can get a sense of
their personality and make connections with people that you normally wouldn't. It
can also be bad because you spend so much time communicating online that you
forget how to actually have conversations and confront people in person.
Emily Woodrich: I definitely do not think that there are any benefits that social
media has provided in regards to speaking to people in person. When you are talking to people via social media you are either speaking in abbreviated form or have
time to think about a response instead of having to give one in real time. Body
language and tones of the voice are extremely important when speaking to people
in person, that drives the conversation, you can't do any of that on social media,
it's all fabricated.

Talk through your needs to go on social media websites every day. If so, do you have
any specific reasons of why you go on them?
Abigail Doerrmann: For a lot of people, most social media is a "need". I feel like
although I am on twitter and Instagram a lot, if I didn't have it it wouldn't affect
me. I do use Facebook a lot more and would probably consider that a "need" more

than anything else. The reason I say that is because I communicate with a lot of
distant relatives and families on a daily basis.
Emily Woodrich: My only needs to go on social media are for my job or to share
photos of my life to my family and friends. I think social media is one of the
greatest inventions, being able to share with your loved ones what is surrounding
you at that very moment is priceless. I document everything I do with photographs, why keep it all to myself? I love hearing the opinions of others, for instance when I need to decide what kind of product to buy, or how long the line was
to get into town. Also I need to stay up to date with every new social media aspect
for my job requirements. Having the ability to connect with any number of people
at any time is awesome.

How do you use social media as a tool for meeting people and creating opportunities?
Abigail Doerrmann: I have used social media a lot recently as a tool for
meeting people as I entered college. I joined the "Class of 2020" Facebook
page to get to know my future classmates before we all moved in. I do have
a couple friends now that I met and talked with months ago through the use
of this. I also used Facebook as an opportunity to find babysitting and nannying jobs all throughout middle and high school. I could use my towns local pages and created connections with many other people.
Emily Woodrich: When I have friends who talk to me about non mutual
friends of theirs frequently, I want to get to know them too. Social media is
a non-awkward way to meet someone you don't know at all, you can see all
their likes and dislikes, and start chatting in a non confrontational way. Opportunities are endless, people find lost loved ones, raise money, and even
alert people of major events going on.
Which is your favorite social networking platform? Facebook, Twitter, Instagram?
Why?
Abigail Doerrmann: My favorite social network is Instagram, mostly because I like seeing how other people are doing.
Emily Woodrich: Instagram! I love the fact that it is a straight forward way
to JUST share photos, it's not meant for anything else and that's my number
one reason for using social media, sharing photos.
What limitations on social media have you encountered regarding the way you interact with people? Is this something you could overcome?
Abigail Doerrmann: I have encountered some limitations regarding communicating with others in person. After talking to someone for a long time
just over social media and you finally meet them in person, it can be a nerve

wracking experience. Although it can be kind of overwhelming, as I have

gotten older, I have overcome this by allowing myself to not let what happens online affect my day to day life.
Emily Woodrich: I can honestly say that social media has not created any
limitations, because from the second I joined it, I made it a point to be sure
it did not conflict with real interactions with others. So in a way I saved myself, I knew from the start it would really harm the way people communicated from each other and I didn't want that to happen to me.

III.
a.)

1.) Social media has introduced new ideas into the world.
2.) The media has changed the way people communicate.
3.) It is extremely easy to talk to people on social media.
4.) Most people in the world have recognized the most popular social media platforms, such
as Twitter Facebook and Myspace.
5.) If searched correctly, you could find yourself a job.
6.) People can gain new opportunities by communicating with people of interest.
7.) Social media impacts business and creates more opportunities to advertise.

b.) 1.) New job opportunities.

2.) New ways to interact.
3.) Real life vs. internet slang.
4.) Technological advances.
5.) Advertisement.
6.) Personal growth.
7.) Face to face confrontation.
8.) Repeated language found in social media.
Search Terms

Sources I can access based on these search

terms

Hidden influence social media has on language

The hidden influence of social networks

by Nicholas Christakis. February 2010.
TED Talks. https://www.ted.com/talks/
nicholas_christakis_the_hidden_influence_of_social_networks

Social media introducing new ways to interact

How the mysterious dark net is going

mainstream by Jamie Bartlett, 2015. TED
Talks
https://www.ted.com/talks/jamie_bartlett_how_the_mysterious_dark_net_is_going_mainstream

Observations of face to face interaction

Mass Communication and Para-Social Interaction by Donald Horton and R.Richard

Wohl. Published January 2015. Google
Scholar. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/
abs/10.1521/00332747.1956.11023049?
journalCode=upsy20

Facebook

Facebook: Corporate Hackers, a Billion

Users, and the Geo-politics of the Social
Graph by Alex Fatal. Project Muse. PDF.
UNCC Library Databases.
http://muse.jhu.edu.librarylink.uncc.edu/article/484380

Personal Growth

Co-creating unique value with customers

by C.K Prahalad. Article. Emerald Insight.
(Found through Google Scholars)
http://www.emeraldinsight.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/doi/full/
10.1108/10878570410699249

Language Habits

What our language habits reveal By

Steven Pinkers. July 2005. TED Talks
https://www.ted.com/talks/
steven_pinker_on_language_and_thought

The growth of technology

The jobs well lose to machines- and the

ones we wont by Anthony Goldbloom.
Published 2016. TED Talks https://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_goldbloom_the_jobs_we_ll_lose_to_machines_and_the_ones_we_won_t

Social Medias effects on students

Engaging Students Through Social Media

by Paul William Eaton. Published in 2014.
UNCC Library Databases.
http://muse.jhu.edu.librarylink.uncc.edu/article/581713

IV.

Humans have now entered a century that could communicate with just a click of our fingertips. I am interested in how social media can alter the way people act in real life, and how
tremendous the effect on socialization within the media really is. Social networking sites such as
Facebook and Twitter allow people to connect with almost anyone. From a co-worker, to a
neighbor, browsing these sites can make one feel apart of a larger community. Sites such as these
allow people to have the ability to re-connect with old friends, make new ones, share ideas and
photos, and trade ideas. We as a society can collaborate with almost anything. With this simplicity that social media holds to express yourself, it can hinder peoples wants to leave the house.
The way people choose to respond and communicate face to face can circle back to our social
media interactions and how it affects us. The more social media continues to thrive, the more
susceptible our language is to degradation. The english language is one that should not be tampered with, and social media gives society the opportunity to do just that. In person and online,
our language could adjust for better or worse. This paper reflects on societys interactions outside
of social media, and discusses the question of if our English language is being affected.

V.
Authors Fatal (2016) and Goldbloom (2016) argue how the use of interaction within the
media is widely valued. These websites are so useful that humans could become completely dependent on them. Facebooks technology can do almost anything. For instance, the internet is
capable of simple tasks such as sorting information, accessing information, diagnosing diseases,
and creating charts. People in todays society have overlooked how much time we actually put
into social media. Are we too dependent on social media websites and the internet that we will
eventually not depend on our own knowledge anymore?
Eaton (2014) introduces the topic of the educational factors that social media has to offer.
With the many educational systems we have within school today, social media can play a big factor in supporting the connection of students. Social media platforms have become an experiment

to see how much of a positive impact forums on social media can enhance students educational
experience. For instance, social media is introducing many new ways we can interact (Bartlett,
2015). As more students and young innovators join the social media networks, more websites
and forums are being created. Examples of these websites include Kahoot, Brainpop, and PBS
Kids, which allow educational interaction between teachers and students. These websites include
fun games, interactive study groups, and a Q and A forum for people who need further help on a
certain subject. With this being said, the internet for students is slowly getting more interesting,
more exciting, more innovative, more terrible, more destructive.
Social media allows users to create their own social identity and personality. Consumers
have developed their own co-creation of value (Prahalad). People create their own useful community pages, social forums, and business advertisements. Because all of these tactics are usually
successful, we as a society now seek to influence others through social media rather than in person. The future of competition now lies within who can have the most followers, who can create
the most forums, and who can get the most likes. With more people following you, the more
your statuses and forums get read. Due to more people wanting to excel through the internet,
more people feel as though social interaction face to face is not as important, or not as necessary
(Horton & Wohl, 2015). The conditions of the responses are not as genuine, or sincere. The english language throughout the initiation of social media has slowly become less complex due to
the internet slang the comfort of online talking. The internet seems to be an amazing medium for
all languages, for instance, talking to people online creates a confidence in oneself and when
speaking to people in the real world, it is completely different. The annihilation of face to face
interaction is due to rapidly increasing users on social media.
Ones outlook on life can be due to many factors, such as family, religion, or experience.
Most people do not think about their opinions and where they originate from, it is just simply
their opinion. Christakis (2010) argues that in today's society our opinions and outlooks on life
are due to what we are most interested in, in this case social media. Ones location in the network
and how they perceive themselves online can impact ones life in obscure ways. For instance,
Pinker (2005), speaks of what our language habits reveal. The way people choose to respond and
communicate face to face can circle back to our social media interactions and how it affects us.
One could become too comfortable talking online, and be nervous in person. On the other hand,
one may learn how to better interact with people online, allowing them to be more confident in
person. What we see in people online may be different from what we see in them in person. Ultimately, social media and face to face interaction correlate in many ways. The way we use
words, learn, and relate to others on social media can be found in how we use words, learn, and
relate to others in real life.

Works Cited

VI.

Christakis, Nicholas. "The Hidden Influence of Social Networks." TED Talks. N.p., Feb. 2010.
Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

Promotion Mix. Indiana: Kelley School of Business, 2009. Print."How the Mysterious Dark Net
Is Going Mainstream." Jamie Bartlett:. TED Talks, n.d. Web. 08 Sept. 2016.

Horton, Donald. "Mass Communication and Para-Social Interaction." TED Talks, Jan. 2015.
Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

Fatal, Alex. "Facebook: Corporate Hackers, a Billion Users, and the Geo-politics of the Social
Graph." Project Muse. UNCC Library Databases, n.d. Web. 08 Sept. 2016.

C.K Prahalad. "Co-creating Unique Value with Customers." Emerald Insight. N.p., 2004. Web.
08 Sept. 2016.

"What Our Language Habits Reveal." Steven Pinker:. TED Talks, July 2005. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

"The Jobs We'll Lose to Machines -- and the Ones We Won't." Anthony Goldbloom:. TED Talks,
n.d. Web. 08 Sept. 2016

Junco, Reynol, and Paul William Eaton. Engaging Students through Social Media EvidenceBased Practices for Use in Student Affairs. Hoboken: Wiley, 2014. Print.