Social media
Interactive platforms for creating, sharing, and networking content.
Social media are new media technologies that facilitate the creation, sharing, and aggregation of content among virtual communities and networks.
- field
- Digital communication and networking
- known_for
- Enabling user-generated content, social networking, and viral information sharing
- key_feature
- Dialogic transmission (many sources to many receivers)
- global_users_2023
- 4.76 billion (59% of global population)
Reader's Guide
Social media represents a fundamental shift from traditional media's monologic model (one source to many receivers) to a dialogic system (many sources to many receivers). This transformation has enabled unprecedented user participation in content creation, sharing, and networking. However, social media has drawn significant criticism for negative impacts on children and teenagers, including exposure to inappropriate content, sleep and attention problems, and mental health issues. It has also been criticized for worsening political polarization and undermining democracy, with journalist Maria Ressa calling it 'toxic sludge' for increasing distrust. Algorithms that prioritize engagement tend to favor content spurring negative emotions like anger and outrage, and most online misinformation originates from a small minority of 'superspreaders' amplified by social media. Despite these concerns, social media remains integral to modern life, used to share memories, form friendships, build communities, learn, and promote people, companies, products, and ideas.
Did You Know?
- Social media outlets operate in a dialogic transmission system (many sources to many receivers), while traditional media operate under a monologic model (one source to many receivers).
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is Social media?
Social media refers to a class of digital platforms that let individuals produce, distribute, and gather content within online communities. Rather than a one-way broadcast model, these tools enable people to interact with one another as both creators and audiences.
What is the key feature that sets Social media apart from older media?
Its defining trait is dialogic transmission, meaning information flows from many sources to many receivers simultaneously. This many-to-many structure replaces the traditional one-to-many broadcast model.
How many people use Social media platforms?
As of 2023, roughly 4.76 billion people worldwide—about 59 percent of the global population—use social media in some form. That makes it one of the most widely adopted communication technologies in history.
What is Social media most known for?
It is best recognized for empowering everyday users to generate their own content, build social networks, and spread information virally across the internet. These capabilities have reshaped how news, culture, and conversation travel globally.
Which broader field does Social media fall under?
Social media sits squarely within the domain of digital communication and networking. It functions as an interactive layer where people create, share, and connect through online platforms.
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