Social media is a global platform that allows users to connect with others via photo and video sharing. The popularity of this mode of communication is ever-growing, and it has come a long way since its humble beginnings.
Six Degrees was one of the first popular social networking sites, allowing users to create profiles and add friends in 1999. Weblogs, such as LiveJournal and Blogger, also gained popularity in the early 2000s.
Six Degrees
While it's difficult to pinpoint the exact first social media site, Six Degrees was one of the first recognizable ones. Launched in 1997, it allowed users to curate profiles and lists of friends to connect with others on the platform. It closed in 2000.
The name of the site comes from the "six degrees of separation" theory, which suggests that all people are linked to a random stranger within six or fewer acquaintances. Milgrim's 1967 study tested this theory, finding that a person in Iowa could be connected to someone in Belarus with a chain of acquaintances no longer than six steps.
Twitter, launched in 2006, is another example of a popular social media network. It allows people to send short messages in 140 characters or less.
MySpace
MySpace focuses on music promotion and has been an excellent platform for bands to connect with their fans. It also has a blogging feature that allows users to share their news and updates with friends and followers.
Myspace allows users to reveal a wide range of personal information on their profiles, including sexual orientation, relationship status, occupation, religion, body type, gender, education, and interests right here. These revealing choices can raise questions about privacy and identity construction.
Students could study the ways in which MySpace limits its users by looking at its terms of service and user guides. This might provide a good opportunity for discussions about technology haves and have-nots, as well as social class differences in Internet access. Students could also examine the way in which MySpace users present themselves through their blogs and communication boxes on their pages.
Facebook was first launched as “The Facebook” in 2004 and became open to everyone in 2006. It’s the most popular social media platform and can be accessed by anyone over 13. However, young children can sometimes be exposed to content that will upset them on this site.
Other platforms have come out to fill various niches in the social networking world. Reddit, founded in 2005 by University of Virginia roommates Alexis Ohanian and Steve Huffman, allows users to post stories, discuss issues and vote on the best content.
Twitter, created in March of 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass and Biz Stone, stands out from other social networks with its 140-character limit. Snapchat, developed in 2011 by Stanford students Evan Spiegel, Reggie Brown and Bobby Murphy, appeals to teens with its disappearing messages.
Twitter is a social networking website that allows its users to share short messages, known as tweets. It has more than 330 million active members worldwide. It is also a very popular platform for businesses to connect with potential customers.
In 2004, Facebook was launched and gained popularity among college students. It later spread to the rest of the world and became one of the most far-reaching social media platforms.
Stanford University students Evan Spiegel, Reggie Brown and Bobby Murphy developed Snapchat in 2011 as a messaging app that deletes messages after a certain period of time. The app is used by 363 million people each day.
Pinterest is a visual discovery platform that allows users to save and curate content from friends, strangers, and brands into personal pinboards. It has a unique business model and features that separate it from other photo-sharing platforms.
Colleges have a great opportunity to promote their programs and engage students through social media. However, administrators need to be careful how they use these platforms.
One way to ensure that your campus’ social media strategy is on track is by using Sprout Social. Our social media management software provides a number of tools that are perfect for colleges. These include a content calendar, engagement and post-scheduling capabilities, and more. This allows you to plan, create and schedule your content for all of your favorite platforms. You can also monitor and analyze your audience’s behavior and interests to help you reach your goals.
