Rough Draft Part 1

I wanted to talk about how social media is shaping our lives more and more, leading to a Circle-esque lifestyle in the near future. With the constant need to tweet, post, and share memories and moments of our lives, it is either share or be forgotten. Not only are we sharing personal moments of our lives for the world to see, we are also inviting others to participate in a global conversation. Sometimes, social media can be a tool for us to learn more about the world and others. It can be a positive communication tool. The first part of my essay is focused on Twitter and Facebook specifically.

I found this article that mentioned the to 10 global trends on Twitter from 2016:

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/12/06/rio-olympics-2016-us-election-pokemon-go-twitter-top-trends-in-2016.html

1.     Rio2016

2.     Election2016

3.     PokemonGo

4.     Euro2016

5.     Oscars

6.     Brexit

7.     BlackLivesMatter

8.     Trump

9.     RIP

10. GameOfThrones

The interesting thing about this is that six of the ten trends are political and global news stories, while the other four are more in the entertainment genre. This shows that people are using social media platforms to talk about issues of importance to them, and not just to share their latest selfie. Social media can be an engaging interactive way to gain information and connect with others. It is not surprising to see what I labeled the entertainment trends on Twitter, since we would expect that people are sharing what is important to them. If it’s not a particular moment from their own life, it is something exciting that is happening in another “realm,” where the fad is not just a trend on Twitter, but a trend in real life. If you don’t know what Pokemon Go is, or haven’t seen the latest episode of Game of Thrones, you’re missing out from the conversation. That’s why it’s so refreshing to see matters of politics on the trending list.

As in the Circle, it is becoming a necessity to be digitally present. So many trends occur on the Internet, that if we don’t have access to social media sites, we are losing out on information pertinent to the way today’s society functions. We rely on social media to present us with current news, to keep us connected to the world, and to share our lives with others. I think this is where social media becomes like the way The Circle presents it. It takes on the Bentham, panopticism idea, where it is share and be present, or be punished (in this case, the punishment is closer to just missing out on the trends of society).

First, there was the invention of the phone that was such a technological feat. We could communicate with people all over the world. But now, we can share photos, message, and even videochat with people all over the world via online social media platforms. Facebook particularly excels at providing access to worldwide connection, as I often communicate with my great-grandmother in the Philippines via Facebook. The messaging and video aspects of Facebook work well for International communication.