Politics and Social Media

 Hi Everyone, it's been a long time! We just had the week off for spring break, and let me say it was a fun one. I went to San Francisco for the first time, and it was magical! I really loved it, and had the best food of my life there. I will definitely be going back to SF, hopefully soon! Anyways, today's topic is about politics and how that is tied into social media! 

Social media and politics go hand in hand nowadays. Many people get their information from social media (a bad idea). Personally, I think its not a good idea AT ALL to get your news off of social media. I think its important to find real sources and then form an opinion on a social media post. It's crazy how many accounts are dedicated to politics now. I will say I follow a few accounts that post about news, but that is not the only source of news. I follow accounts like Change and Feminist on Instagram. They post content about what is happening in the world, especially topics that are going on in the US. I never look at the comments on these posts because it's sad to see so many negative comments sometimes, and they mostly fight in the comments. Social media is an excellent outlet for many people to voice their opinions, which is great, but there is a line that people tend to cross when it comes to posting. I do think that social media has made me more aware of politics growing up. I made a mistake when I was young and believed that everything on apps like Instagram and TikTok was real. This seems to be the problem with many people now, which is sad because many older people are starting to believe political posts on social media. Influences are also getting called out to speak about politics, and people get very upset if they do not. Personally, I don't think celebrities need to speak out if they don't want to because, a lot of the time, they are also uneducated on trending topics. Politics is a very tricky line to cross when it comes to social media. 

B05 - Social Media Activism and Advocacy

Hey everybody, I hope your week is going well! It's already that time again for another blog post. I wanted to talk about what's been going on! It's finally spring break, which means we get a week off, so next week, you guys will not be hearing from me. Unless something sparks my mind, I have a lot of plans that I am super excited about! This week is midterms for many people, including myself. It's been going well; I still have a few things to finish. Let's get into this article because I'm excited to discuss this topic. 

Today, we're going to talk about Social Media Activism. The first thought that pops into my mind when I think of Social Media Activism is the Pray for Paris movement. This was because of the terrorist attack that happened in 2015. Once this news hit social media, everybody jumped on and shared their thoughts and feelings about the attack. Many people changed their profile pictures, bios, and usernames to fit the cause. Many organizations got together and started fundraisers. Before this movement started, I was unaware of social media's power and how important it is to use your platform for good. Seeing everybody come together and support people in a time of need was outstanding. Another example of this was the BLM movement. Almost everybody I knew, including me, posted about the issue and tried to spread as much information to people as possible. I remember people posting a black screen showcasing their support for the cause. 

There is also something to be said about social media apps. It's a great way to spread information to people, but the downside is that much of the information being spread is false. It's hard to determine what is real and fake on the internet nowadays. I am constantly stumbling upon information that I can't quite tell if it's reliable. (This means like trends and funny memes, not news stories.) 

One of the most prominent examples is the Anonymous group. If you're not familiar with the Anonymous group, it started in 2003 as an internet group consisting of hackers and political activists. They first became popular in 2008 because of a project called Project Chanology, a series of organized protest actions against the Church of Scientology.  The group works together to spread awareness on important topics, like climate change. On our college campus, people always protest and speak their truth. I love seeing students protest for what they believe in; it's very powerful to see in real life. 

Overall, I think it's important for people to speak out and make their voices heard because they create the future for so many people. 

Crowdsourcing & Crowdfunding

 Hey guys, it's that time again! I hope everybody's week is going well. Mine has been good and pretty busy, but I like that. This week, I want to talk to you about Crowdfunding and Crowdsourcing. Both of these are very useful in the real world but a lot of the time it is mainly used online. Let's break down both of the words so you can have a better understanding. Crowdfunding is when people ask for money to help fund an idea or project. Crowdsourcing is when you get a group of motivated people to help solve a problem or help with an idea or project. Crowdfunding and Crowdsourcing are often used on social media platforms. 

 There are four types of Crowdfunding techniques: donation, debt, rewards, and Equity. Donation crowdfunding is when people donate money and expect nothing in return. Debt crowdfunding is when you are given money towards your goal but are expected to pay the money back once finished. Reward crowdfunding is when donors receive something in return for donating; like NPR, they are constantly giving back to their viewers. Finally, Equity crowdfunding is when a business can give away a part of its business in return for some funding. On the internet, people constantly try to promote their projects or goals in the hope that someone will see it and help fund them. If we look at TikTok, this app is designed to help people connect with like-minded individuals. This means content you like to see on your for you page catered towards you. While you scroll on this app, you are shown many types of videos, many of which are people trying to promote products and ideas. Many people try to ask their following to help with a goal or product they are trying to create or sell. 

Crowdsourcing is different from crowdfunding. We see crowdsourcing online and on every social media platform. Just a reminder: Crowdsourcing is when a group of like-minded people come together to help reach a goal or solve a problem. If you look up crowdsourcing on TikTok, a hashtag is dedicated to crowdsourcing. Under that hashtag are over 2000 videos of people asking for help, explaining the idea, and showing the final product of people coming together. I think crowdsourcing is a great idea when asking for help and building a community. If we take a look at the music industry, fans will get together online and make a plan to surprise the artist at the next show. They will organize a meet-up outside the venue on the day so that everybody is ready, and then, when the concert starts, they will surprise the artist. This is a great example of Crowdsourcing. It is a very useful tactic when trying to complete something challenging fast. Overall, Crowdsourcing and Crowdfunding can be very useful when trying to accomplish a goal/project.