Have you ever heard of the Key Master? The phrase is from the 1989 movie, Say Anything. The Key Master took everyone’s keys when they walked into a party. The keys were carried around in a sack and at the end of the night, the Key Master had to judge whether or not someone could drive home. I love social media but in some ways, I think that some people should have a Phone Master or even a Social Media Master in social settings. It’s really for their own good. Unless you have your accounts locked down like Fort Knox, once you hit share or send, the photos or the tweet are out there.
We are in the age of photo power. Instagram is an app that allows you to take photos and share. Instagram has given us the power to share photos with everyone around the world on what we are doing and where we are. Not only can you share via Instagram but you also have the option to share on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Flickr, and Foursquare. Instagram also have similar features like other social media accounts. You can “like” or comment on other peoples photos, search by a user or a hashtag. Instagram is fast and easy for photo sharing and compliments other social media networks.
Instagram search for the Pope
Instagram has changed social events and every day life with the simple snap of a photo, a possible hashtag, and a share. As a society, we are much more at ease with sharing photos. Photos that were once kept in a photo album at home on the coffee table are no more. We now upload albums every day through Instagram.
I recently helped a pub-crawl and scavenger hunt company with some marketing. I recommended that they create a hashtag for every event and teams that posted photos on Instagram with the correct hashtag would receive extra points. There were over 150 people partaking in this one particular pub-crawl and scavenger hunt and all of them had Instagram on their phones. They were excited to receive extra points simply by using an app they already love.
Instagram search for #party
If you’ve been to any live event like a game, concert, or any other social event, it’s inevitable that you saw people tweeting about what’s happening. You might have even been a @mention in the post. Twitter is massive. Twitter is a microblogging social media network that allows its users to send 140 character messages called tweets. They are easy to create and hashtags are fun to include with your tweet. You can even see what other people are talking about with what’s trending.
Trending Topics on Twitter
Twitter has changed how we look at live events. The Oscars are a perfect example with Ellen DeGeneres’ selfie that registered over 3.2 million retweets. Not only did she break Twitter but it was the largest retweet to ever happen. The Boston marathon is another perfect example of how social media is changing everything. Police were using Twitter to ask for help with the suspected terrorists. Loved ones were tweeting photos of where they were.
Twitter is like a giant water cooler that society is hanging around. It’s a digital soapbox where everyone can engage. Twitter has become what CNN used to be. The biggest news happens more often than not on Twitter. Where did we find news about the raid on Osama Bin Laden? Twitter. Because of how hugely popular and relevant Twitter has become, live news events have a Twitter feed at the bottom of the screen.
Instagram and Twitter together and separately have changed social everything. It’s undetermined whether it’s for the good or the bad. We are now a society that shares every moment 24/7/365. Photos through Instagram and small bursts of information through Twitter.
References:
(1989). Say Anything: CBS/Fox Video.
Social Travel 
Twitter still worries me as far as news source is concerned. These unfiltered, unedited comments can be a great source of the most relevant news or the latest gossip. Twitter was filled with misinformation from the Boston Marathon Bombing. The Boston Police Department tweeted “despite reports to the contary there has not been an arrest in the Marathon attack.” Tweets also gave away the location of police search parties which could have alerted the suspects. On the other hand, Twitter did keep interested parties glued to their computers, mobile phones and tablets. So yes, it has changed our behavior.
http://kuow.org/post/twitter-lessons-boston-marathon-bombings
Like anything else (TV, newspaper), you need to make sure you’re reading tweets from a verified source. For instance, I personally follow CNN, ABCNews, and my local newspapers and news channels. It’s more of a guaranteed source than say @JoesNews.
Karen,
Your blog was a great read! Some of my friends are big on Instagram. They take pictures of EVERYTHING…Including the food they are eating (which is a bit much). I think social media can be a bit dangerous. Recently, one of my friends went on a 7-day trip to Hawaii. She was posting her photos to Instagram and Facebook…Someone found out that she was out of town and her house was robbed. I think Twitter, Facebook and Instagram have allowed people to open up a little too much.
Nicole Poretto
Karen,
Great overview of microsites. You are absolutely right about following verified sources for news. I like the immediacy of Twitter for news, but I verify it by consulting another news source.