Public Interest and Private Rights in Social Media

Cornelis Reiman

• Publisher: Chandos Publishing
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781780633534
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Computer Science General
• Index: Computer Science

Social media has an increasing role in the public and private world. This raises socio-political and legal issues in the corporate and academic spheres.Public Interest and Private Rights in Social Media provides insight into the use, impact and future of social media. The contributors provide guidance on social media and society, particularly the use of social media in the corporate sector and academia, the rising influence of social media in public and political opinion making, and the legal implications of social media. The Editor brings together unusual perspectives on the use of social media, both in developed and developing countries.This title consists of twelve chapters, each covering a salient topic, including: social media in the context of global media; the First Amendment and online calls for action; social media and the rule of law; social networks and the self; social media strategy in the public sector; social media in humanitarian work; social media as a tool in business education; social media and the 'continuum of transparency'; business and social media; making a difference to customer service with social media; social analytics data and platforms; and altruism as a valuable dimension of the digital age.

• Provides a guide to the key components of corporate and academic use of social media
• Offers technological and non-technological, legal, and international perspectives
• Considers socio-political impact and legal issues

1

Social media growth and global change

Cornells Reiman

Abstract:

Through a remarkably rapid rise in the availability and pervasive use of social media, the once-familiar face of interpersonal communication, product promotion, information dissemination, political activism and governmental concern has changed significantly.Boundaries have blurred between personal and professional lives, as well as between nations, through international networks that bring people together as never before. It is vital, therefore, that all who implement social media strategies for organisations, or use it for personal purposes, are aware of what the digital world offers in the community, the political sphere and the workplace. Also, it is noteworthy that laws and enforcement alter in all instances to accommodate changes that are brought about by a new communications paradigm that has global ramifications. Plus, social media users generate a vast amount of data that can be mined for the purposes of social analytics.

Key words

social media

social media history

social activism

social media in the workplace

social analytics

legal implications of social media

Introduction

The Internet is an exceptional development that has transformed economic activity worldwide, more so in some countries than others (McKinsey, 2011). However, in addition to that marvel, there are a vast number of applications that have changed businesses, as well as the lives of ordinary people. I think particularly of social media, and doubt that a day goes by without a news report on how social media applications are used for the betterment, or the detriment, of society. We can only be amused, amazed or appalled at the ingenuity of people who utilise new technological applications for their own purposes, or that of collectives with which they are associated. The sheer size and reach of social media is also remarkable. Consider some recent examples, as are presented below.

According to statistics released by Twitter, users of that social media application send over 350 million tweets per day, being the equivalent of a 15 million-page book. (Tsukayama, 2011; Morrison Foerster, 2011). A subset of that is expressed in the traffic related to one topic. For instance, in a very short timeframe, Sina Weibo, which is China’s Twitterlike micro-blogging service, attracted more than one million posts related to a Japanese mayor who denied that the Nanjing massacre happened (Armstrong, 2012). Clearly, social media numbers are immense. Remarkably, music consumer research indicates that celebrities who bombard fans with Twitter updates are likely to have shorter careers than those who maintain an aura of mystique. Apparently, easy access to stars through social networking websites has made them less appealing and increases the likelihood of followers getting bored (Reuters, 2011).

With increased social networking involving children, a recent innovation is of benefit to parents. With the help of new software, parents can monitor offspring on Facebook without being ‘friends’. The programme scans Facebook profiles, communications and ‘friend’ requests, and uses algorithms to identify potential bullying, sexual overtures, or talk of drugs, violence or suicide. This alerts parents to signs of trouble in a child’s Facebook account without them being privy to content shared between friends (AFP, 2011a).

Furthermore, widespread use of social media applications has introduced new complexities to the legal and ethical environment of higher education. For instance, traditionally, social communications were considered to be private. However, with much of this information now published online and accessible by the public, more insight is available as to students’ attitudes, opinions and characters (Cain and Fink, 2010). Even so, at all levels of education, from primary school to universities, educators use social media to enhance classroom discussion. Students can comment, pose questions (that can be answered by anyone) and feel free to voice their opinions (Gabriel, 2011).

Wherever social media is used, it is worth highlighting the need for prudence, care and discipline, and checking settings when posting. For instance, a teenage girl in Germany forgot to mark her birthday invitation as private on Facebook. When posted, mistakenly, her invitation could be seen by everyone on Facebook. This went viral, and 15 000 people confirmed their attendance. When her parents found out, the party was cancelled, their home was cordoned off and a hundred police were present, with four of them on horses. Still, 1500 guests showed up. Some were detained, and a few were injured (Grieshaber, 2011).

This raises the issue of how social media is affecting society, or large parts of it, and leads to the view that we are entering into a new paradigm that is changing behaviour and society. Particularly, there are many young people who are defined as being a part of a cohort called ‘Generation C’ – connected, communicating, content-centric, computerised, community-oriented and always clicking. This significant group of people is expected to stimulate economic growth, and encourage public and private invest in faster and more widespread communications infrastructure (Friedrich et al., 2011). Such is also expressed by Chappuis et al. (2011) in relation to digital consumers falling into distinct groups characterised by the types of digital experiences they prefer. These include:

digital-media junkies – the people most likely to be early adopters of new technologies – often younger men;

digital communicators – those spending more time on social networks – often women; and

video digerati – those more likely to consume Internet-based video.

Obviously, segmentation of users is beneficial for marketing purposes, as well as for social scientists.

Such segmentation is also undertaken elsewhere, such as the humanitarian space, as was done by Edward G. Happ, who is the CIO of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) based in Geneva, Switzerland. Also, he is Chairman of NetHope (www.nethope.org), a US-based consortium of 33 leading international relief, development and conservation nonprofits focused on information and communications technology (ICT) and collaboration. He provides wise words by suggesting that:

technology capacity building for the vulnerable needs to be clear about audience and intention, and beware of unintended consequences;

the most important participants on the team are the beneficiaries, and the most relevant technologies are the ones that beneficiaries adopt; and

the prophets and the priests of technology can learn from each other, assuming both distance and proximity (Happ, 2011).

As might be apparent, social media applications offer very positive benefits for people, and organisations of all types. These arise in daily life for many users, even if only keeping in contact with selected friends and family members. Even so, there are negative elements, too. Incessant twitters from people full of self-importance, and streams of trivia, clog social media channels. As stands to reason, you can tell a great deal about a person and their values by what they post. This could be interpreted as a positive outcome. However, when any of that online activity goes too far, it is good to know that laws, and lawyers more so, are very much up to date with what must be done in situations where there is an obvious objection, or actual offence.

To state the absolute obvious, social media is an incredible event, and a wonderful experience, and this has had an impact upon a large proportion of the global population. As is generally accepted, social media is a wonderful marketing resource for generating brand awareness and connecting with prospective consumers and/or supporters. Also, these applications provide individuals, collectives and companies with a solid yet flexible platform that facilitates the crafting of valuable connections and lasting relationships. It is all about community, a sense of community and a community spirit. The issue, then, is what binds people to become part of a collective, and what keeps them together, such as to advance a common ideal, or share in a broader experiences that, in itself, is the social media community.

Essentially, communities can form for any number of reasons. For instance, there is a Facebook page dedicated to people who are called Phil, or Phyllis, Campbell. These people even arranged a convention in a tiny place called Phil Campbell in Alab...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• List of figures and tables
• Acknowledgements
• Preface
• About the editor
• About the contributors
• Chapter 1: Social media growth and global change
• Chapter 2: Flash rob or protest movement: the First Amendment and regulating online calls to action
• Chapter 3: World justice – the rule of law around the world
• Chapter 4: Default metaphysics – social networks and the self
• Chapter 5: A service-oriented approach to public sector social media strategy
• Chapter 6: Social media in the humanitarian space
• Chapter 7: Social media: the new tool in business education
• Chapter 8: Social media: does it generate the continuum of transparency in organisations?
• Chapter 9: Social media: blessing or curse? – a business perspective
• Chapter 10: Improving the customer experience: how social media can make a difference
• Chapter 11: The uses and accuracy of social analytics data and platforms
• Chapter 12: Altruism – a valuable dimension of the digital age
• Index