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48 Characteristics of Social Media

John Spacey, updated on May 12, 2023

Social media is a class of media that allows anyone to post and share information, content and opinions. This challenges the traditional model broadcast model where information originates from large media outlets without any participation from the public. Social media allows anyone to reach out to the world and participate in a massive global conversation that never pauses. This has both advantages and disadvantages. The following are common characteristics of social media.

Algorithmic and AI bias	Algorithmic or AI generated content recommendations
Allows anyone to publish anything – takes media control from elites	Brand building
Building a social network	Cancel culture
Censorship	Challenges dominance of traditional media
Collection of personal data	Community building
Content sharing	Cyberbullying
Cybercrime	Cyberstalking
Dependence on likes and comments for self-esteem	Digital addition
Disinformation and misinformation	Engaging – easy to consume lots of time
Facilitates groupthink	Facilitates open debate
Fear of missing out	Filter bubbles – following people who reflect your own views
Global interaction	High engagement – users spend many minutes on app
Inclusive and participative – most people can get an account	Influencer marketing
Influencers	Information connectedness
Instant consumption of information	Likes
May encourage consumerism	Multitasking
Often owned and operated by very large technology companies	Online disinhibition - People say things online they wouldn’t say in real life or face to face
Permanence – public posts may be recorded may places such that they never disappear	Person to person communication via direct messages
Public posts – what you say enters public record	Real-time updates
Short content possibly encouraging short attention spans	Social connectedness
Socialization	Substitute for face-to-face interaction
Surveillance	Targeted digital ads
Timely pulse on events, opinion and trends	Trolling
User-generated content	Virality

A filter bubble occurs when you only follow people who align to your viewpoint. Algorithms may also create filter bubbles automatically by giving you content that's similar to other stuff you've viewed. A filter bubble can cause an individual to confirm mistaken beliefs or to overestimate how much others agree with them.