NEW/SOCIAL MEDIA & THE IDEA OF USER DATA

Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter.

These are the social media platforms I interact with the most, alongside millions of other users. When I think of these social platforms, I don’t necessarily have to question how they fit into the category of “new media,” as it seems plainly obvious how they are. Social media is a concept and idea that is the result of the internet and advanced digital technologies. However, Elaine in our lecture today explained that the term “new media” shouldn’t just describe a growth in physical developments in technology. Instead, as stated in the reading by Eugenia Siapera Understanding New Media, “Understanding social media leads to an understanding of changes and transformations in social processes, norms, ideas and practices” (Siapera, 2013, pg.2). Hence, new media becomes more about understanding the culture behind using certain media concepts and products. Siapera uses the example of the television, and how this not so new invention can be classed as “new media” through how it is being used. Nowadays, it isn’t uncommon to find a television in multiple rooms of the home, as opposed to just the living room. This is the result of a change in social norms.

Elaine stated in the lecture how social media can be seen as the roots which grow within the “pot plant” of new media. If the pot was to expand and develop, the roots will form to take up the space. But what interested me the most was the idea of us people as users within these social networks, and the impact we ultimately have on the growth of the platform. Sam Hinton and Larissa Hjorth explains this more in Understanding Social Media, stating, “Unpacking social media necessities us tracing how internet cultures have shaped and been shaped by, the social” (Hinton & Hjorth, 2013, pg. 8).

One way we as users can have an impact on these “internet cultures” is simply by using a platform. From the moment you make an account on Facebook, for instance, your user data and habits are tracked. By agreeing to the platform’s terms and conditions, you are signing yourself up to be monitored. A big factor that comes into this is advertisements. When Elaine brought up how she is still seeing advertisements for products she searched up a long time ago, I couldn’t help but sympathise. I could simply think of a product inside my head and Facebook will somehow find out and show me a sponsored post of that exact product on my feed. Seems freaky, but honestly, this is just the result of your behaviour on Facebook being tracked.

Through a simple google search, I was able to find a guide created specifically for advertisers who want to target specific audiences on Facebook. The guide mentions that “interest-based targeting” is the most effective way to advertise to a specific consumer as it is based on a user’s likes, what app’s they engage with, pages they have liked etc. Another way is through “behaviour-based targeting,” which is through data consisting of purchase histories, personal anniversaries and events. This data can also reveal if you are planning a holiday! Hence, it doesn’t seem so insane how Facebook “knows what we are thinking” as every single click, like and post is gathered as data.

Website: https://adespresso.com/guides/facebook-ads-beginner/demographic-targeting/

Image: https://www.oberlo.co.uk/blog/the-beginners-guide-to-facebook-advertising

Readings: Siapera, E. 2013, Understanding New Media. SAGE Publications, London (Section: pp.1-16).

Hinton, S & Hjorth L 2013, Understanding Social Media. Sage Publications, London 2013. (Section: pp. 1-31.)