Katelyn Hunter’s Learning Journal

      Reading through chapter six brought to the front of my mind the positive aspects of social media and networking that I had lost sight of due to the often overwhelming negatives. Social media was not created to be used nefariously, it was created to give people a way to connect regardless of geographic location both professionally and personally. Professional apps and websites like Linkden provide a platform for individuals to post resumes with direct contact to references, follow and interact with professional peers, give employers a way to reach out to or vet potential candidates for jobs, and give individuals the chance to explore dream jobs. Personal apps and websites like Instagram, Snapchat, Discord, and Reddit allow people to connect with others who would not otherwise fall in their social circle; it also allows people like closeted LGBTQ+ members communicate with others like them if they are not safe in their in person community. Obviously negatives do still ...

       Overall I was overwhelmed and very shocked by the reading We Are Data by John Cheney-Lippold, as it explains how we are perceived online and what that means for each of us. I was fascinated to learn that there is a threshold for someone to be classified as “Google famous” and that a traditional celebrity may not be considered so, depending on their online presence. I was also fascinated that the algorithm designed to expedite the process of repealing information cannot differentiate between celebrities stage names and legal names, like the example used of Rihanna versus her full legal name (xi). I was also intrigued that we are not perceived by who we perceive ourselves to be, but that our online data is used to build a profile of us based on our activity that may be wholeheartedly incorrect (3) and that it can affect the level of privacy you are afforded. According to Lippold, “you are rarely ‘you’ online” (4) instead our online selves are a separate version ...

        I would define social media as an online platform intended to connect communities, I would define social networking as a person or group reaching out through social media and events to extend their community and open themselves to new opportunities. I currently use Snapchat, TikTok, Pinterest, Discord, YouTube, and Reddit; I recently also used Instagram but deleted it at the beginning of the year.        I use Snapchat primarily to communicate with friends who live out of state and do not visit Florida often or at all; I use TikTok to get ideas for communication and gentle parenting tips with kids since I have a lot of younger cousins and one nephew who I watch during the week, and also for Dungeons and Dragons ideas or content as my girlfriend and I love to play tabletop RPG’s. Pinterest is similarly used for Dungeons and Dragons ideas or character art but also for home ideas and general aesthetic art. I use Discord to communicate with f...

       Throughout my social media use I have put down a set of rules for myself. For example, I do not follow or allow people to follow my personal account if I do not know them and if a person or account is causing me to feel more negative than positive, I unfollow them. These rules applied to all of the platforms I have used, which includes Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok; interestingly enough the platforms I use follow the trend seen in one of our readings regarding age and platform use. I typically have two accounts, one to post my own content and follow only the people I know and trust and another to follow whomever I want but the account remains completely anonymous, I never post on them. These rules have served me well, especially when I first joined and posted on Snapchat often about work and my life, now I rarely post on any platform and when I do it is usually a very vague caption on a photo I feel comfortable sharing. Since joining social media I have defi...

 Hi everyone! My name is Katelyn but I prefer to go by Kat or Kai. I was born and raised in Lakeland, Florida which is where I currently reside, I am an English major and intend to go through with a masters degree in library sciences. I love the ocean and animals that live in it which led to me getting my scuba license two years ago, my favorite sea animal is the cow-nose stingray! I have a girlfriend who is hilariously opposite to me, she’s an IT major with a love for numbers, and we have two cats named Snickers and Doober. I have had a few different jobs, one prior to college as a waitress, one seasonal position at a jewelry store, and one as a cashier at a grocery store. My favorite social media platform would probably be Discord just because of how flexible the platform is and how easily I can communicate with my community on it, this is my first time blogging so I will be interested in seeing how that affects my choice, if it does. I don’t believe I have actively read or inter...