The Rise of Social Media in the 21st Century and its Advent as a Legitimate Form of Communication
John Santry
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

Abstract
Social Media offers an exciting new area for individuals and business to explore relationship building and communication on a grandiose scale. This study explores how the tools and opportunities afforded by social media sites are enabling and legitimizing a new form of communication. While social media is beneficial in numerous ways, greater audience engagement increases the possibility of misperception. Therefore, a new category of social network related etiquette and ethical responsibility is warranted. This paper will look at some of those reasons for increased awareness and attention to being politically correct when publically participating in social media, and how those elements can affect ones personal or professional perception.
Keywords: social media, social network, Facebook, Twitter, communication, etiquette, ethics
The Rise of Social Media in the 21st Century and its Advent as a Legitimate Form of Communication
Introduction
Social media has broken the barriers of space and time, enabling 24/7 communications on a scale unlike any before. Most people alive today can recall a time when not too long ago, we primarily communicated via hand written mail, spoke on landline telephones, and shared updates face-to-face. Today, technology enables us to send text messages; leave voice mail; instant message anyone anywhere; send email; talk wirelessly through our cell phones and hands-free devices; make online video calls; and of course, interact remotely with one another through the internet where a plethora of social media platforms has literally redefined communication. Social media’s redefining of communication has had such an enormous effect on our society that it is essentially becoming a utility. The basic rules of communication have been altered, so much so that even the relationships between businesses and consumers are changing. A new, more robust multidimensional model of instant feedback and gratification is replacing the last remnants of yesteryears more traditional, one-way communication models. We update “statuses” and “like” our friends statuses on Facebook; we “tweet” our thoughts on anything in 140 characters or less in real time; our social lives our geotagged and physically mapped when we “check in” to a particular hot spot or event; and our corporate profiles and resumes are uploaded to LinkedIn for anyone to browse through and possibly network with when searching for jobs. These are just a few examples, but the uses for social media are practically endless.
What is social media? To truly understand what is being discussed here, perhaps we should start with a definition. Merriam-Webster defines social media as a “form of electronic communications (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content such as videos (2013).” This newfound form of electronic communication comes with its own rulebook though, and to communicate effectively in the social media sphere, one must understand these new “rules of the road.” People want to have a say. To be engaged in a process and contribute meaningful dialogue to a conversation is rewarding. Social media enables that on a greater scale than previous methods of communication. Personal interactions are not longer limited to face-to-face encounters, lengthy wait times for hand delivered mail, or the necessity to remain near anchored communication infrastructure (i.e. land lines). By communicating in the social media space, the opportunity for audience exposure is increased to a point where it is basically guaranteed. Not only that, but finding an audience that will present the author with genuine and relevant feedback carries a similar guarantee.
History of Social Media

Merriam-Webster’s reports that 2004 was the first known use of social media. While that particular statement is highly debatable, what is not debatable is the fact that the first email was delivered in 1971, and with it, the door to all future things social media related was opened. Before the end of the 1970s, web based bulletin boards were being employed by computer hobbyists to share ideas and information. However, it was not until the late 80s that engineers and scientists at CERN (The European Organization for Nuclear Research) would develop what we now know as the World Wide Web (CERN, 2013). What came next nearly another decade later was the origin of Blogging, AOL’s first chat rooms, and the founding of Blackboard for educational collaboration. After the burst of the Dot Com bubble in 2000, the world saw the start of Wikipedia in 2001, Apple’s iPod, and Friendster – the first recognized and credited, modern style social networking site. MySpace, Second Life, LinkedIn, iTunes, Facebook, Podcasting, Flickr, YouTube, and Twitter, just to name a few, followed shortly there after between 2001 and 2006. Now, toward the close of 2013, Facebook has over 1 billion active members, YouTube records 1 trillion views per calendar year, and astronauts aboard the International Space Station tweet regular mission updates and space images to the public (O’Callaghan, 2013).
Social Media as a Legitimate Type of Communication

Communication changes over time. People no longer communicate with hieroglyphics, but we recognize them as an ancient form of communication that evolved over time. In today’s era, communication is becoming ever more instantaneous and social in nature, thanks almost entirely to the advent of the Internet and technological advances in portable electronics and computing. Glance around a restaurant or airport and you will be hard pressed to find people that aren’t looking down at their smart phone. Social media’s effect on our ability to interact and communicate has permeated all facets of our society. According to Paul Booth, PhD and assistant professor of media and cinema studies at DePaul University in Chicago, social media has been accepted as an alternate form of engaging one another across all age groups. “There has been a paradigm shift in how we communicate; instead of face-to-face interaction, we are tending to prefer mediated channels of communication (2013).” This isn’t necessarily bad news though. Research shows that people are actually becoming more social and interactive thanks to social networking. It is simply the style of communication that is changing (Keller, 2013). Where we do see a disadvantage of social media when compared to face-to-face interaction is in the quality of some connections between social network ties. We do not always feel as personally connected to a person at the other end of communication on Facebook for example as we do when engaging someone face-to-face. Nevertheless, the advent of social networking and new communication technology has far reaching effects. According to Nick Bowman, PhD and assistant professor of communication studies at West Virginia University, actions that trigger a bad online relationship likely are the same ones that trigger a bad relationship in real life (Keller, 2013). It is simply a difference in modality. The communication is still legitimate. In the social media space, more is key – that is, social media allows for more contact and communication in a public manner, therefore amplifying the potential for increased quantities of both positive and negative communication.

The Effects of Social Media on How We Speak and Write Social media is encouraging us to write for a larger audience. No longer is writing solely an intimate or personal exchange between two people. Instead, posts or tweets, as they are commonly called, are essentially open letters to anyone with access to your preferred method of social sharing. To revisit the earlier comment about the new “rules of the road” for communicating in the social media sphere, understanding the common set of tools and characteristics of communicating openly as such is vital to being an ethical and responsible blogger. Conversation is no longer one-way, broadcast, or somehow transmitted to a passive audience. The very definition of social media conveys the necessity of at least two-way conversation, and in many cases, multidimensional conversation with a potentially limitless number of respondents. Social media very effectively engages everyone involved, or at least provides ample means for one to become involved with great ease. Contributions and reactions are encouraged from anyone that takes an interest in the dialogue. However, while social media solicits interaction on a large, multidimensional scale, ‘encourage’ is the key word to this statement. Positive or negative feedback via the social media space is ‘encouraged’ by the utility like ease by which communication is facilitated, but it is not required nor always received. It is because of this ease that collaboration between an individual and the masses within the social media space thrive. I refer to social media as a utility because to many, it is becoming as readily available and important to everyday life as electricity and running water. Accessing information on the Internet takes no more than a click. Social media thrives on the ease and scope of these connections. While many social networking sites are standalone Web portals on their own, they also provide links to other sites, business, resources, and any information that can be publically accessed or data-based. What social media creates for us through that connected network of collaboration, contribution, and conversation, is the fundamental characteristic of the medium: a new community that enables relationships with others who share common interests, attitudes, and goals. Some of these interactive communities form quickly and dissolve even quicker, but many have real staying power and the potential to effect entire economies. Never before have virtual communities, where members seldom if ever see each other face-to-face, been no less robust and relevant than the real world communities we live in everyday.
Generational Perception of Social Media An interesting fact to note is that in today’s business place, three generations of workers occupy and share both the real and social media space. Those groups can be broken out into the Baby Boomers (50 years old and greater), the Generation X-ers in their 30s and 40s, and the Generation Y types in their 20s and under. As one would imagine, the Baby Boomers have the most difficulty when it comes to comprehending and adapting to the phenomenon that is social media.
Business, Etiquette, and Social Media Etiquette no longer applies to just the dinner table any more. Avoiding embarrassing situations that could result from inappropriate social media posts demands a new level of responsibility and ethical demeanor in the business place. When working hard to sign the deal or lock down a client, etiquette and manners are paramount. More specifically, it is the absence of good business etiquette that will be noticed and negatively affects the way people perceive you and your business. In today’s era of iPhones, Androids, Blackberrys, and the always-on, instantaneous communication of the socially networked world, simply understanding that a professional, poised appearance matters isn’t always enough. One must actively incorporate some basic principles of poise and presentation into their profiles to generate and keep good business. The Internet never forgets! In a world where a single off-color tweet or status update on Facebook in the heat of the moment can go viral, the damage from what you may think to be a simple composition of wit can be magnified exponentially. A single misguided post can cause irrevocable damage between a business and a client. For that reason, like the old adage of “think before you speak,” one must now “think before you post.” Posting is not the only potentially problematic area of social networking. Social profiles today are incomplete without a photo. Whether you run a professional business or you just maintain a personal leisure profile, including a photo is a must. With respect to business, extra attention should be given to using professional quality and politically correct photographs appropriate for the respective industry. Along those same lines is the element of projecting self-confidence in the social media space just as one should project self-confidence in person. Humor can be a powerful ally, and at times one might be tempted to use a little self-depreciating humor in the quest for modesty. Don’t do it. Unless your business model is built around a comedic enterprise, attempts of this nature can make a professional or organizations social networking profiles, and therefore the person/entity in question, appear unqualified. Another aspect of social networking etiquette that is often ignored is the habit of putting real people ahead of your phone. Simply put, people trump phones. When meeting with a prospective client or existing customer, say at a dinner or formal business function, your phone should be away and out of sight. Leaving ones cell phone on the table is rude and gives off the impression that the person or people you are with are not worth your time or full attention.
Social Media Moves the Stock Market

If somehow after reading this there is still any doubt that social media is not a legitimate form of communication, consider this: Social media moves the stock market. When a billionaire investor like Carl Ichan can drive the price of a stock like Apple through the roof by tweeting his positive opinions on the company’s outlook, the significance of proper etiquette and responsibility in the social media space should alarm us all. For example, when the Associated Press’s Twitter account was hacked on April 23, 2013, and a fake post led people to believe an explosion in the White House had injured the President, the stock market plummeted (Menza & Thompson, 2013). The power of these tweets has forced the Security and Exchange Commission to institute a multi-step authentication process to news stories that break on social media. There is also new focus on the growing use of social media for the disclosure of financial related press releases. This past July, the CEO of Netflix shared information publically through his Facebook account stating that the success of online viewing was exceeding one billion hours for the first time (Menza & Thompson, 2013). This news sent the stock soaring more than 10% the next day and prompted investigations by the SEC, which found Netflix’s actions to be perfectly legal.
Conclusion
Social media offers new and exciting opportunities for both businesses and individuals alike. Not only are we provided with a means of relationship building through new communication, but also businesses are afforded the opportunity to align them selves with a cutting edge trend and expand their reach. A new era of responsibility is upon us though, as businesses look to leverage social media for functions like marketing, media relations, internal communication, investor relations, public affairs and crisis communication (Argenti & Barnes, 2009). While some might argue that social media is ruining real communication, others would argue that we are actually more connected now as a result. I trust that the business leaders and citizens of today’s globalized economy will find ways to take advantage of our technologically enabled world without sacrificing our most important personal and professional relationships. In many ways, the changes in communication that social media brings are beneficial to us all, and with proper implementation and responsibility, this new dynamic will continue to bring about positive change.

References
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Menza, J., & Thompson, C. (2013). Carl Ichan says he’s taken a position in Apple, says stock undervalued. CNBC.com. Retrieved from: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100952123
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