Social Media - What In the World is Web 2.0?

Web 2.0 "refers to a perceived second generation of web development and design, that facilitates communication, secure information sharing, interoperability, and collaboration on the World Wide Web. Web 2.0 concepts have led to the development and evolution of web-based communities, hosted services, and applications; such as social-networking sites, video-sharing sites, wikis, blogs, and folksonomies." (Wikipedia, Web 2.0)

The term implies a "new and improved" version of the web and that case could be argued based on all the new functionality we think of when we refer to Web 2.0. CoolTown Studios describes it best on one of its social networking sites by saying, "... Web 1.0 was commerce. Web 2.0 is people." Aside from the immediate association conjured in my head to a Charleton Heston scene in Soylent Green (1973), I think CoolTown Studios has summed it up nicely in a nutshell. Web 2.0 may be more about people connecting to each other than it is about selling products to people. According to research cited by the Pew Internet and American Family Life Project, at least 75% of young adults between the age of 18 and 24 have a profile on a social networking site and 80% of GenX'ers buy products online. Even the older demographic of adults 65 and older use the internet regularly to communicate by email. But in this vast, ever-expanding list of technologies, where does the consumer start, and more importantly, what is the intended benefit? That question is as complex and varied as all the different platforms from which to choose and is based on individual consumer objectives (do I want to make friends, or just influence people?). For example, if a person wants to get alternative, real-time news feeds, they may be interested in Digg, Newsvines, or one of the other newszines where users upload and share news with other members of the network. Users, not media outlets, rate and rank the news stories they read to generate interest. This interaction between users who share a common objective is one of the driving principals behind social media: the evolution of the web to allow consumers to publish as well as consume media.

Albert Bandura's social learning theory of reciprocal determinism seems to best describe consumer behavior in this interactive environment (Bandura, 1986). There is an unquestionable reciprocal relationship between the consumer and social media, as consumer perspectives may be directly impacted by what they read, see and hear and the consumer may in turn share those perspectives with others. Morley Winograd and Michael Hais, co-authors of Millenial Makeover, discuss this effect in describing how the millenial generation, those born between 1982 and 2003, exchange information in social networks. Bandura investigates the impact of media on social learning theories of behavior in his more recent work, Media effects: Advances in theory and research (Bandura, 2001). Bandura believes that the mass media, particularly television, continues to play the most prominent role in influencing public opinion because it provides "the best access to the public through its strong drawing power. For this reason, television is increasingly used as the principle vehicle of justification" for opinions and beliefs. I wholeheartedly agree with Bandura's assessment that "research on the role of the mass media in the social construction of reality carries important social implications". This is easily demonstrated when you consider shows like "JackAss" and its imitative power to influence others to model and mimic the absurb and often dangerously risky stunts performed in the show.

Aside from the implications of group modeling behavior, what hierarchies exists within the groups when behaviors are being adapted? Clay Shirky describes this process in his discussion on group formation and group hierarchies. Shirky believes the essential elements of group behavior form a "ladder", in which group members communicate, share, and collaborate before engaging in collective action (Shirky, 2008). So, if our behaviors are influenced by the way we interact with each other, how might this influence the way we learn and acquire information?

William Richardson, author of Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts, comments on learning technologies and connective writing in Understanding Instructional Technologies. Richardson believes that "old taxonomies and the way we organized learning will not work in the digital world" (Richardson, "The Read/Write Web"). Richardson observed that as we moved from the read to read/write web and begin to publish what we write, we can reach a much broader audience. "We really are doing real work... putting out ideas out there" to connect to others. Writing is not simply text anymore.. it's multimedia (Richardson, "The Future of Education is in a Web-Based World"). Richardson notes that change is slow in the education system. However, Richardson does cite examples of schools that have embraced and "absorbed" new technologies, such as a virtual high school in Florida. This is an example of promising shifts in pedagogy that will make learning more collaborative. Nonetheless, Richardson comments that in spite of these signs of progress, "we are still in textbook mode, and that's not really the way the world works these days." The education system may be slow to adapt to changes in technology, but GenX'ers and millenials have already fully embraced the digital world.

Winograd and Hais believe millenials are the most ethnically diverse generation, with 4 in 10 of non-european origin, and 20% have at least one immigrant parent. According to Winograd and Hais, millenials are the generation with the least amount of gender differentiation in how they vote, their ideals, beliefs, and education. MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube seem to be helping millenials come together, form a consensus and organize groups (Winograd). The millenial generation is using social media such as blogs, wikis, and networks for news and information rather than television and more importantly, communicating online with each other to get information (Hais). The success of the Obama campaign was largely influenced by social networking strategies in media like MySpace and Facebook, which promoted self-organizing infused with positive messages of unification and hope. This appeared to be particularly appealing to millenials who connect through social media.

Winograd predicted correctly that the forces of technological change embraced by the millenial generation would bring about significant change, and ultimately in this case, political change that promises to improve optimism and diminish divisions within American society. Interesting to note is that Winograd and Hais believe generational ideals and belief systems will not change as millenials get older, a point they discussed in the following interview. Hais also notes that partisan allegiances normally form in early adulthood, but that should not be confused with "party loyalty" (in other words, millenials may not define themselves as democrat or republican while they may endorse and embrace specific ideals):



Clay Shirky, author of "Here Comes Everybody", and adjunct professor of graduate interactive telecommunications at New York University, made an astute observation in his presentation at a Web 2.0 expo conference. Shirky noted that, "media that targets you but does not include you may not be worth sitting still for." In other words, media needs to be inclusive and interactive if it intends to keep its captive audience.

References:

CoolTown Studios, "Web 2.0, and Why Your City Needs It To Attract The Creative Class"

"Soylent Green is PEOPLE", Soylent Green (1973) , IMdb database,

Pew Internet and American Family Life Project, "Generations On Line in 2009", January 2009

Bandura, A. (2001). Social cognitive theory of mass communications. In J. Bryant, & D. Zillman (Eds.). Media effects: Advances in theory and research (2nd ed., 121-153). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

William Richardson, "Understanding Instructive Technologies"

Clay Shirky, "Here Comes Everyone", 2008

Morley Winograd, Michael Hais "Millenial Makeover", 2008