The odds are great that if you are reading this blog post you are well acquainted with at least one of the forms of social media represented in the logos above. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram are all popular sites used by a variety of people. While the uses of these social media sites vary, the common factor in each one is communication. Each site allows its users to stay connected to other users through the posting of photos, videos, statuses, and 140-character posts to let our followers know "what's happening."
Users of these social media sites are allowed to communicate across the globe. While sharing photos and videos is popular, one of the main forms of communication that we see repeatedly used is in the form of written text. Or rather, typed text. Patrons of social media type messages every day and with the click of a button their messages are sent out into the world.
The question has been raised before whether people would post the same content if it was a matter of saying it aloud and in-person rather than typing it and never having to verbally communicate the same message. Think back to the last Facebook status or Tweet that you published. Would it sound silly if you were to suddenly say the same thing aloud in a room full of people? Would you feel self-conscious if you had to deal with the consequences of your words face-to-face?
When we type text and send it out through social media, one of three common responses can be expected. The first is agreement, the second is disagreement, and the third is no response. Most everyone is prepared for these responses when the communication takes place face-to-screen. We can accept that no one has responded to our post and we're ready to fight to the death to defend ourselves against someone who disagrees with our point of view.
But would you be just as ready for any of these responses if they were happening in real time? Could you say something aloud to a room full of people expecting a response or reaction only to be met with blank stares? Would you be comfortable defending yourself against someone who disagrees with you if you had to look them in the eye to defend yourself?
In exploring human communication in the digital age I asked myself how comfortable people would be reading their own published text from social media sites aloud and in front of a camera. I contacted several friends and asked them if they would be willing to let me record them and use the recording for a blog post. The video matter was not known to the participants until moments before the recording took place. I asked each of the following participants to sit in front of the camera and read aloud a piece of text that was published on their social media networks. The text was of my choosing and the particular piece of text was unknown until I handed them a piece of paper with the text written out.
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| Tweet by Laina posted on March 14, 2015 |
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| Status by Amber posted on April 19, 2015 |
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| Tweet by Brady posted on March 11, 2015 |
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| Tweet posted by Anne on March 14, 2015 |
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| Status posted by Ashley on January 11, 2015 |
Each of the participants willingly agreed to allow me to record them; however, I found that all but one participant showed signs of anxiety in the moments before and during filming. One participant questioned their post and the length of it, suggesting that I could maybe pick a shorter one. Two other participants showed concern over the way they had read their posts and they each requested a second try so that they could try reading the posts in a different way.
The two participants who requested a second try at reading their posts, asked how they should read their posts. My response was that they should read them as if they were making the statements in a normal face-to-face conversation. Each of the two participants showed apprehension about how that emotion was going to translate into the post and what their intended emotion had been when the post was made.
Only one participant accepted the task without any questions or hesitation. That participant did not show any negative feelings about their post.
After looking at each participant and looking at the amount of activity they show on social media sites, I noticed a pattern. The participants who showed anxiety at being asked to record themselves reading their posts aloud were the people who had the most activity on social media. These participants show a pattern of posting several times a day or had shown a period of time where many posts had been made within a limited window of time. The participant who showed the most confidence with the task, was the person who had the lowest social media activity.
The past few years have shown communication take a sharp turn toward digital forms. This project was executed on a small scale, but the results of this experiment support the evidence of digital forms of communication taking root as well as showing that those who are more submerged in digital communication, find it more difficult to separate digital and non-digital communication.
