Module 12 Week 12 Reading Response Post

July 30, 2015

Social Responsibility Theory

SRT Question: Based on this excerpt from the reading: “Communication is that part of social activity wherein there is dissemination of information, entertainment and educative exchanges intended for positive development of the society”, do you think that American media outlets are failing the public and their responsibility of broadcasting communication “intended for positive development of society” in the same way India’s media is failing them? (If so, in what ways?) Or are we, the public to blame for the content that is being presented to us because of what we chose to consume?

Social Network Theory

SNT Question: What would be another application for EventGraphs? The article also discusses the use of integrating natural language processing (NLP) to ascertain if messages are positive or negative. What other information would be useful to include in an EventGraph?

Diffusion of Innovations | Assigned Reading (Links to an external site.)

DoI Question: Think about the last digital communication innovation you adopted. In regard to this innovation, where would you place yourself on the adoption scale of the Diffusion of Innovations? What was it about this particular innovation that caused you to fall into the category that you did?

SRT Response:

Based on the research contained within the article, I would have to state that the mainstream American media, while likely good intentioned, are probably not contributing to the positive development of society, all the time. While the broadcasts do provide knowledge, generally they appear to fall with the Agenda Setting principal. Even outlets that strive to shed media light where it’s been often dark, have some specific agenda, even if that’s reporting on the underreported stories.

However, with both rapid adoption of Internet access, but also for anyone with a few dollars or a free social media account, to be able to broadcast globally any message, does the media really need to provide a SRT function, or will society be able to filter within this context what it needs to make the appropriate opinions or judgments?

Social Network Theory Response:

When looking at the EventGraph modeling it reminded me very much of the charts/graphs we’ve created of consumer flow through one of our theme parks. Essentially, we have two mechanism for “tracking” guests movement throughout our parks and therefore can determine where there are frequent bottlenecks, opportunity for re-engineering of spaces, or prime location for culinary or merchandise carts. This idea is similar to that of casinos or retail locations that look to monitor “foot traffic.”

I think beyond social, but staying within digital, leveraging cooking technology, it is also possible to track consumer behavior on where the visit on websites. Ad tracking software allows for identifying where current customers may be intersecting with new/potential customers on websites, brands, and networks a company or organization may not have considered. With that knowledge, they can then purchase advertising or messaging through the site or affiliated ad network to re-engage or initially activate a potential consumer.

Another possible useful detail beyond interactions would be any key demographic or location specific information. Additionally, the intersection of other topics or trends within a specific message or tag could be associated with the same content. The time parsing was a great example of additional segmentation within the data, but also potentially the other networks the users are engaged.

Diffusion of Innovation Model

Generally, I’m probably more within the Early Majority of consumers who adopt or use a new technology or communication, which probably holds true for my most recent adoption. Within the presentation example, while I’m on my second personally owned iPhone and iPad, having purchased the fourth and second generations respectively, initially, it would probably be my adoption of Instagram.

From my perspective, I found myself adopting it because I was seeing the content integrated into another social network I’ve used for 10 plus years and was an early Adopter/Innovator (Facebook). As someone who enjoys photography, Instagram seemed like a logical fit. The app is clean, easy to use, and allows me to showcase my travels across several networks simultaneously, specifically Instagram itself, Facebook and Twitter. While I have more followers than I’m following, I do tend to follow more brand than people.

I probably adopted out of both interest and that it fit within a hobby. I’m not prone to selfies, but do enjoy posting pictures of landscapes, events, friends, fun activities, etc.

Question:

  1. What steps, whether intentional or otherwise, have you personally put in place for your own digital footprint to bring about social responsibility?
  2. What innovations would you find yourself a laggard or completely unengaged or noninterested? Is there a particular reason why, or why not?

Post Tags:

Diffusion of Innovations, MMC6400, Social Network, Social Responsibility, Web Theory,