Comments on: Is social media inherently useless?

By: Zachariahet

Zachariahet — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 01:11:55 +0000

Amazing post.., brother

By: Jenny

Jenny — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 15:35:21 +0000

Funny how suddenly this thread has sprung back into life…
Note to self: some kind of auto-generated ‘popular threads’ sidebar thingy would be handy.

@James Stewart – I think you’re right, often ‘usefulness’ is easier to decipher with hindsight.

@Mike R – The line between ‘business’ and ‘friendship’ is very much blurred for me. I’d say around 50% of my facebook friends are business contacts. Having said that, there are some business contacts I definitely wouldn’t send a friend request to.

I’d say this is also an example of where social media apps are not ‘use-less’ – when they facilitate transactional business relationships.

By: Mike R

Mike R — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:04:22 +0000

Following on from Alan P’s comment, I would agree and suggest that altruistic social networking tends to be much more satisfying for all concerned.

However, as networking is also a useful business and promotional tool, its fairly inevitable that web-based social networking will become more oriented around exploitative business models, human nature being what it is. In this context, the blurring of the lies between industry/business relationships and personal/friendship relationship can be disastrous for all concerned, and I don;t think it’s any co-incidence that Facebook (for example) has lost a lot of credibility since its weaknesses and potential for exploitation have become more apparent. Although no-one would necessarily describe it this way, I think a level of trust has been eroded, which is why the membership/usage has dropped off dramatically recently as people vote with their feet.

I also wholeheartedly agree with the points earlier raised – these things are, to some degree “pointless”, and that is their joy. One can wonder whether such things should vacuum up our time, or perhaps we ought to be asking whether or obsession with using our time for economically expedient ends is out of control.

By: Emma Mulqueeny

Emma Mulqueeny — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:38:48 +0000

Weirdly this seems to have been the general thread of many and varied discussions these last two weeks – and always results in a passionate discussion. For some reason the usefulness and value of social media fascinates and confuses people, presumably because there is no real or reasoned argument for or against it really. However, Jenny, you have put your finger on exactly why that is. You are absolutely right, and it goes back to the old adage: ‘some things are right for some people some of the time’.

By: Mike Lowndes

Mike Lowndes — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:38:33 +0000

Yet to be proven either way, but for me, twitter gets me, for low cost, near to the mental space of some clever / interesting – or even both 8^) – people, outside of the occasional conference, seminar or other jolly. So, at least potentially, I may learn something and, even contribute. So, I vote that these streams are useful – there’s just a chaotic mass of them at the moment. Good thread setup Jenny, I missed it earlier somehow.

By: alan p

alan p — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:03:08 +0000

Social Media has been with human species since we could grunt – it clearly isn’t useless as otherwise we would have bred it out. Whats more true is that its hard to put direct financial value on it, which in todays’ world makes us question its overall value.

Social Media is a lower transaction cost way of doing what humans always do – communicate – and that is massively shape changing if history is anything to go by

Hmm…will have to waste some time and blog a full response

By: James Stewart

James Stewart — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 10:47:00 +0000

One of the most interesting aspects for me of Brian Eno and Clay Shirky’s talk the other night were the mentions of flash mobs as quiet protest in various countries, and twitter as safety device for activists in Egypt. In those contexts things that seemed like a gimmick in comfortable western societies suddenly become radical, changing societies rather than merely social lives.

Which of course, isn’t to downplay the positive impact in our social lives, or really to engage with questions about social media’s role in institutious, but perhaps a small reminder that usefulness is often something we can only judge in hindsight.

By: godofbiscuits79

godofbiscuits79 — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 19:36:46 +0000

to be fair I didn’t classify whether google reader being useless was a good or a bad thing!?! I can’t see myself using it was more my point…

By: Brian Kelly

Brian Kelly — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 17:34:57 +0000

I spotted this thread via a referrer link to my post.

For info, Mile Ellis and I will be running a blogging workshop in a month or so’s time. I’ve an interest in organisational benefits of micro-blogging – as opposed to the social banter we (e.g. Mike and I) currently have.

Two initial suggestions:

o shared watercooler moments for a distributed environment
o learning how to communicate in 140 characters, rather than peer-reviewed papers over a year’s timespan.
o Twitter buddies as personal agent (“anyone know good xxx Web sites?”, “I’m in Paris, what can I do?”, etc.)

Brian

By: Will McInnes

Will McInnes — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:10:27 +0000

OK, cool – I’m relieved we can still have a conversation after my bizarre bollock-led turn yesterday

Look, I think Twitter is so much more than a fun time wasting tool. Clear usages aren’t necessarily right before our eyes just yet, but I can imagine all sorts of use for institutions.

What do institutions generally want to achieve?