Reading with Media

Hey Everyone!
Welcome Back!

Okay, so obviously our generation is obsessed with social media. Now, I'm talking about Twitter, Facebook, SnapChat, Pinterest, Instagram, Vine.... Literally everything popular now is considered a media.
But really social media is just a bunch of people being nosy. I know a ton of people who still have their ex-boyfriends/girlfriends as "friends" on social media and all they do is just snoop their photos and newsfeed to see what they're up too. Then, of course, there are the obligatory individuals who use social media as a platform to promote THEMSELVES rather than an idea or a cause. And we all have those other types of people who use social media to bash others in a bullying setting.
No matter what platform you use, there will always be the stalkers, the selfish, and the self-absorbed.

I'm guilty of it too! I can't resist a good selfie but I draw the line at keeping "friends" just because they passed through my life and are now irrelevant to who I am now. I, like everyone else, also have an opinion but I also draw a very dark line at overstepping my bounds on the Internet and becoming a keyboard warrior.

Now, the social media I'm a part of, I use for other things rather than myself and my family. I use it for reading.

I don't use Twitter to tweet about my mocha frap I just got at Starbucks. Because no one cares.
I use Twitter as a way to talk to people I wouldn't normally have the chance to talk to, like... Authors.

Yup. I'm one of those. After I'm done reading a great book or a not so great book, I'll tweet the author and let them know what I think. In my opinion, reviews from the NY Times can only really get you so far as a writer. I would want to know the opinions about real people reading my books. If you don't like something, tell me why. If you did love it, tell me why. I think that offering direct feedback to someone based on something of their's that I read does a great service to them.

I'm a huge Pinterest-er. But, again, I use it for reading. You can not believe how many interesting things about books are on Pinterest. I've found Pinterest boards dedicated to fashion surrounding books, tattoos (my favorite), quotes, book lists, TBR journals, literally everything!

Goodreads.com is my life. Goodreads is a social media site where you can let your "friends" know what you are reading and your thoughts on a certain book. You can rate it, review it, recommend it, buy it, join a discussion, join a book club, and even keep track of your books throughout the year. It's such a great resource to track your reading and find something new to read. But it's also a great place for like-minded individuals. Everyone there loves to read so it's highly unlikely that you'll find a mean spirited individual unless YOU are the one completely bashing a book someone else loves. But, what I like about it is that everyone is respectful of the other's opinion. Such a great tool!!! I'm seriously on it all the damn time. It's a problem.

The last social media outlet that I use to interact with individuals surrounding a love of reading is BookTube. Yup. It's a community on YouTube that centered their content on reading. BookTube really opens up a flow of conversation regarding different types of books. The majority of content creators on the site are Young Adult readers but I'm subscribed to people who read and review romances, non-fiction, and adult fiction, as well as the young-adult crowd.
The comments section really opens up the discussion between content creators and viewers, so like with Twitter, the people making the videos can interact with the people watching.
BT also has a variety of content available to it. If you like to see people "hauling" (see what they've just bought) then there's that. People "un-haul" (give away), make TBR's (To-Be-Reads) for the month, do tag videos, collaborations with other creators and authors, and even just do discussion videos. It's really addicting and opens up a new world of reading and content that I would have never have found and experienced if not for the good ol' web. :)

I use Facebook and all the other social media sites just like everyone else, but I'm not so consumed with the media that I lose focus with reality. Or maybe I am because reading itself is losing touch with reality in a way.
I support the media because of the impact it can make and the way it can open someone's mind to new opinions and ideas. Freedom of speech is a great thing but I think people need to use their speech to be open to new things and to voice their opinions in a respectful way. Using social media for a specific cause, like reading, helps me focus on what I consider important and not be wrapped up in the dark side of the net.

My Media!!!

I am not the most social person in the world but like everyone else, I have ways of communicating with others. My primary method is video games. Yes, I love playing video games, who doesn't.

I got started on video games at a very young age, my first system being a Super NES. My favorite game, Earthbound. Back then a person who spent all day playing video games was regarded as an introvert and a shut-in. Those same people nowadays would not be considered those things as often because with the evolution of video games people can now talk to their friends as well as people from the other side of the planet. Video games have become just another form of communication, like Facebook.

Speaking of Facebook, I never really got into the trend with it. Mostly because I heard that once you make an account, you can never delete it. The most you can do is deactivate it and even then people can still look at it. However, despite this it seems that Facebook has taken over because whenever you do something such as signing in to a game you just downloaded on your phone, it almost always gives you the option to sign in using Facebook. I am calling it right now; eventually Facebook is going to be used just like our Social Security Number.

Don't even get me started on Twitter. I tried it once and haven't done it again. I could not understand how it worked at all, and only recently have I understood the concept of hashtags. I can't really say anymore about Twitter because I know so little about it.

Social Media has evolved and taken over. In the beginning it was created just so friends could talk and stay in contact with one another but now it has turned into a marketing scheme. 

Have you ever wondered why it is called Social Media, well here it is. It was originally called Social Networking because obviously the social part being you talking with your friends and the networking part being the series of different computers and Internet devices being used and linking together in order to communicate. Don't confuse what I am saying with the actual definitions, Social Media and Social Networking are actually two different things. However, in pop culture today people use the two terms to mean the same thing. Over the years as the Social Networking sites grew they began using advertisements, and promoting various items and as time passed Social Networking included Social Media in it an thus the terms become interchangeable.

All media is important

It’s pretty obvious that there are endless forms of different media, some of which have been around forever.  We use media to communicate with others and express ourselves.  For example, we have literature, films, photography, the performing arts, and many more.  However, now we have forms of social media that seem to appear overnight.  It’s almost impossible to try to keep up with.  Do you have an account on the newest social media app?  I probably wouldn’t know how to use it yet, but it wouldn’t hurt to try it out.

I think that all forms of media should be embraced because they all have something a little different to offer.  Reading a book and watching a film are two separate experiences, even if they are each telling the same story.  Painting a picture would allow me to create and express whatever I wanted, while taking a photo might limit me to show what is already in front of me.  These different forms of media can pretty much be enjoyed by everyone.  There aren’t many people who would say they hate listening to music or watching movies.  But for some reason, a lot of people seem to dislike media that involves newer technology.  Maybe it’s because we haven’t quite gotten used to the new technology yet, but I don’t think these new ideas should be rejected so easily.  Just like older forms of media, these “new” types can still be viewed as ways to communicate and express ourselves. 

Of course, I still think it’s fair to prefer certain forms of media over others.  Most days, I would probably rather watch a movie than read a book.  In regards to social media, I would prefer to use Facebook over Twitter.  One type of social media that I use the most would be Snapchat.  I know a lot of people see it as pointless, but I see it as a way to keep up with my friends that I don’t see that often.  Instead of texting them all the time (which I don’t like to do anyway), we can send snapchats to show each other what we are currently doing in our lives. 

My main point is that all forms of media have something different and valuable to offer.  Some types may only appeal to certain people, but that doesn’t mean it is useless or pointless.  Each different form can be used for something different and we can find new information in each place we look.  

"It's Complicated": Meditations on Media

Can you imagine how people wrote research papers pre-Internet? They actually had to look in books! Can you imagine how time consuming that would be?! When I need the definition of word? Do I pick up a DICTIONARY? No. I Google it. BTW, there is something to be said that the name of a company is now a verb! But why do I Google a definition instead of picking up a dictionary? One word: Accessibility.  I don’t own a dictionary and I probably never will (lets be serious, that $10 or so could go towards a nice cold brew). I can hop on my laptop, IPad, Iphone, what have you and look up the definition in 10 seconds flat. BOOM.

However, I do and will always have an adoration for print. I love books and absolutely cannot read a novel electronically. And think this stems from my passion for literature. Great works of literature where not accessible on an IPAD when they were written. Books, words on a piece of paper, should be cherished like they were back in the day. And I am someone who enjoys sharing a book with someone else, and well, I am NOT going to let someone borrow my Ipad. I also love a handwritten letter. When someone writes you a letter, you know they took the time and the effort it takes to actually write with a pen or pencil. There is something visceral about it, like there is a part of that person on the paper.  An email with the very same words seems stale and too formal. I also take notes the old-fashioned way with paper and pen. To me, writing is more fluid. I can listen and write easier than I can type and listen, even though I type faster. I feel like when I am handwriting notes, I am digesting the information better than if just I typed it.

I see the various benefits and pitfalls of media, particularly social media platforms.  I’m pretty sure I recently saw an article title (I didn’t actually read the article) comparing Facebook to a drug. I hate to say it, but it’s true. Social media is addictive. When I wake up in the morning, the very first thing I do is grab my phone and check my email, Facebook,  Instagram, and Snapchat. Do I feel particularly excited when I wake up and check these sites? No. It just seems like another part of my daily routine like brushing my teeth. I use these sites to keep in touch with family and friends and as a way to share aspects of my life with them. Social media provides us with this sort of detached way to share our lives; it is not the same when you tell someone the same exact thing over the phone or in person. That is too intimate. Face to face interactions are reserved for those closest to me. And I think that it is extremely important to recognize that there are connections that must be valued outside of social media.

 

Wow, I haven’t really reflected this much on media; I feel like I could write a 20-page paper on it!

Reality Check: Media

First off Hi! It has been a long time since we have written things. 

Now lets get to blog writing!

(Did I forget to mention I have an entire arsenal of gifs?)

When I was looking at the Wikipedia page, I was amazed at all the types of media out there--both physical and digital. I mean I'm no artist or anything ( No, really I'm not that much of an artist, just look at my deviant arts page) wait a second...

I just realized something, there is a lot types of social media out there in the interwebs. I mean I could list them all out but that would very....very....very boring (not even my sarcasm jokes and gifs/pics can help). But seriously there are is a lot. There are social media geared toward different subjects, for example Goodreads, the facebook for book lovers. There is also again deviantart, where people can share their works to the community. So obviously we see where I gravitate towards, considering the fact I practically live on the internet but for good reason. Back when I used to play this one game (not going to mention it because you guys will probably get the wrong idea ;) ), I started gaining all these friends from around the globe and we started talking to each other via social media. Even now about 7 years later I still talk to some of the people now, even though we all have grown up and move into our young adult lives.  To me social media makes me believe that we are not far apart, infact we are closer than we think. Now, I mainly used the typical teenage/young adult social media outlets most people used...except pintrest...only because I need to have some self control or I will end up baking anything that pops up on my feed. It gives me an outlet to rant or just be the really random weird person that majority of you guys don't get to see in class because I'm too shy to say anything. Yes on social media I am a social butterfly, only because I don't have to look at somebody's face :D. But, I should not take this for granted as real relationship come from human contact (which is an entire blog post in itself). 

Sidenote: if you still use myspace or pronounce gif as jif like the peanut butter....

(sorry I needed an excuse to use this gif and the g in gif is graphic so yeah) 

There is a LOT of Media

Before looking at the Wikipedia page that listed out all of the different types of media, I only assumed that physical ways to communicate an idea was considered media. We all know about social media, such as Facebook,  Twitter, Tumblr, etc., as well as print media, like newspapers and magazines.  Television was also an electronic version of media that I knew of before reading the article; but I never would have thought that food, light, and carpentry were sources of media.

I feel that we are all drawn to the types of media that directly give us the information we want when we want it, and that can also entertain us.  We can use Google for almost anything, Facebook to share random things and to look at what other random things are in your news feed, and YouTube to watch plenty of videos varying from pop culture news to gaming videos, and make up tutorials to the cinnamon challenge.  But we don't really come into contact with the other forms, such as paintings and architecture, because unlike during the Renaissance, we aren't drastically changing our style and our views.

Now on the talk of social media, which everyone has at least some version of, I personally only use Instagram, Vine, and Tumblr.  When I first got an Instagram, no one used it, so I thought it was just a photo editing app.  Next thing I know, everyone is using it and are requesting to follow me.  Vine and Tumblr are versions of social media that I have an account on, but only use to procrastinate, I don't actually post anything.  Now Facebook is where things get complicated.  I have an account, but since Facebook became less about what your "friends" actually post and more about ads and what they have shared, I have gotten really annoyed with it, and just don't use it.  Twitter and Pinterest are the types of social media I do not use.  I don't have accounts with either and I honestly don't understand how they work or what their points are, so naturally I just don't use them.

Then there is the topic of Youtube.  Is it considered social media, or is it not?  I consider it a form of social media because their is a possible form of two way conversation.  Their is the comment section where people can communicate with the video's owner or other viewers.  Some YouTubers have Q&A's where they answer their viewers questions, or host livestreams so that their viewers can watch and interact in real time.

Ultimately, social media is a form of media that can reciprocate communication, hence the word "social."