Contemplating Social Media and Whatnot With YouTuber Oceangela

When discussing online identity in a small group within my Interpersonal Media class, the topic of vlogging (video blogging) came up. I mentioned that one of my classmates in high school, Angela, was very involved in the YouTube community, and it turned out another student, Rachel (check out her blog Meow Media), had met Angela at VidCon (a multi-genre online video conference, held annually in Southern California since 2010)! This was one of those “what a small world” moments, and it inspired me to talk to Angela about her experiences with digital communication and see how they related to the topics I have been studying in class and exploring on this blog.

Angela and I met in highschool and had some mutual friends, but got much closer our senior year when we worked together as editors for our school’s yearbook and then started making music together (see pictures of us below). Angela has always inspired me with her radiant positivity and unique creativity and this definitely shows in her videos. Curious how she got into vlogging? In 2007, Angela’s sister showed her charlieissocoollike, a popular YouTube vlogger, and told Angela she would be good at doing the same. Angela thought it looked fun and made her own video in 2008, adopting the username and persona of oceangela.

Beyond YouTubing, Angela is active on other social media sites. When I asked her about how she feels different aspects of her personality come out on these different platforms, she responded that she thinks about these different representations of her self a lot. She acknowledged that she brings a different vibe to each site, largely tailored to what fits in on that platform. For example, on YouTube she is very happy, bubbly, and family-friendly, whereas on Twitter, she allows her sarcastic side to show. On tumblr she finds herself being more artsy, and on Instagram more inspirational. I've noticed these differences on social media and I'm curious about how this “vibe” or culture is developed on a particular platform-- something to investigate further another time.

After discussing the various facets of her identity online, I asked Angela about how she would compare her digital self to her physical self. She paused for a moment, eventually saying that she feels that she embodies all of her different social media aspects “in real life”, not all at the same time, but in different situations. I asked her if there is any aspect of her self that can’t be captured online, and she paused again. She then brought up people she had originally met online but then spent time with in person, saying that they definitely noticed a “presence” that wasn’t captured in her youtube videos. This made me think about how In one of my first blog posts, I talk about auras and question if someone’s essence or energy can be captured through digital media-- but Angela was a bit more practical, guessing that her body language and 3D movement added this other element. Whatever it is, she thinks there is something you can never capture with technology. Nevertheless, Angela is excited about social media and loves to engage with people online.

In our media class, we have talked a lot about relationships that are primarily maintained or started online. When I asked Angela how many friends she has made online she couldn’t count how many! When I asked how many of them she has met in person, she still couldn’t give me an exact number (because VidCon brought so many of them together). She did say though that she feels like she probably has about 20 people that she has met online that she feels close enough with that she would stay with them, and two of her very best friends (that she would go to immediately for support with a problem) are people that she met online.

Angela was excited to talk about her online friends! I asked if she has noticed any particular differences in these relationships, and she responded that the friendships she has cultivated online seem to become deeper connections faster, because “all you have is conversation”. Angela explained that friendships in person can sometimes be obscured by distractions, like the time it takes to meet up somewhere and the surrounding environment, but when you meet online and skype or message, “all you have is each other”. Angela most often uses text messages to communicate with people, but prefers to use Skype with friends that she has met online. Sykpe is more interactive because it has more social cues (you can hear voices, see faces, you talk in real-time, etc.) and it mirrors the platform that she met many of them on-- YouTube.

Beyond the directness of her online interactions, Angela explained that her online friends’ mentalities and interests tend to be very aligned with her own. She specified that a lot of her online friends are especially artistic and into communication (things Angela loves and is passionate about) which gives them so much to talk about. Angela has a video on YouTube with one her online friend Corry, from South Carolina, who traveled to visit Angela in California. Angela gave me a little more context to the video, explaining that her and Corry had met through Myspace and then both gotten into the YouTube world.

In their video together they mention the show Catfish (which has come up in class a few times).  The MTv show brings couples together who have been interacting online to see “what will happen when they meet in real life for the first time,” often with the assumption that they may have been deceiving each other. The show’s name comes from an alternative use of the word catfish as a verb, meaning to pretend to be someone you're not online by posting false information, such as someone else's pictures, on social media sites usually with the intention of getting someone to fall in love with you.

I asked Angela if she ever worries about being “catfished” or deceived online, and she responded very confidently that she doesn’t. She explained that most of her online interactions with people are video oriented-- making deception very challenging. This makes sense. YouTube and Skype are “rich media” in that they allow for a lot of social cues to come through, like facial expressions and voice. It’s pretty transparent. While on the topic of deception, I tried to poke at Angela’s extremely positive perspective a bit, by asking her if she had ever experienced any sort of negativity or hostility online, like in comments on her YouTube videos. She told me that a few mean comments pop up every now and then, but she sounded unfazed by them. I kept poking, “doesn’t that hurt?” She said that she can pretty easily just delete them and move on because they are so few in comparison to the overwhelming amount of good responses she receives. Angela also confirmed that if something truly hurtful or serious appeared, she is sure she would be supported and defended by the YouTube community.

Again, perplexed by her incredibly wonderful online experience, I asked Angela to share any fears she has at all about using digital communication and social media. It took her a moment, but she responded that the “foreverness” of online material does haunt her a bit. She often thinks about the reality that employers can easily look you up online, so it’s important to make sure you are presenting yourself well. Angela sometimes feels that balancing being “real” with her online community but not being “too real” that she could get in trouble can be challenging. Knowing that Angela currently works at American Apparel, I asked about how this professional side meshes or clashes with her online identity. Angela got excited talking about her job, referencing the trending #aaselfie as an example of how many companies today, like American Apparel, want social media attention because it helps the business. Angela even has a YouTube video where she tries on American Apparel clothes and talks a bit about her work experience.

When prodded to speculate on her future with electronic communication, Angela knew that she wants it to be a part of her job. Angela’s passion for digital media is so obvious as she talks about how “it reaches so many people”. Angela already sees herself leaning away from the more leisurely/fun aspects of social media because she is busier and it’s less exciting than it was when she was younger. Angela questions if she’ll even still be on these same social media when she’s older, joking that it would be weird for her future kids to be able to look back on her younger self. This sparked an interesting conversation between us about how our generation is so well documented.

This led me to bring up concerns about younger generations becoming increasingly disconnected. Angela said that there is definitely some validity in this claim. She explained further that her experience with the internet seems to be pretty rare-- the YouTube community she fell into has been super supportive, but she explains that it can be hard on other platforms, like Instagram, to make these connections. Angela brought up how “likes” on these media can make people feel bad if they aren’t virtually popular enough, and mentioned how hard it would be to grow up with this mentality. The constant influx of information and new platform for bullying can be a lot to handle in conjunction with the already present pressures of adolescence. When I asked Angela what advice she would give to younger generations and digital media users in general, she said “don’t worry about numbers! Just focus on having a couple really good friends and that will be more fulfilling.”

Overall, chatting with Angela was lovely and I was thrilled that so much of her experience has aligned so well with the topics we have touched in my media studies. From now on, my posts will probably be a lot less frequent as this semester comes to a close, but I’m inspired to keep being mindful about my media usage and share my ideas digitally. After speaking with Angela, I’m even slightly intrigued to try out some vlogging myself. Who knows where Meditating on Media will go next . . .

Examining #ThisGeneration

What about technology scares you? Do you think that our generation has lost touch with each other because we are constantly "plugged in"? Does social media distract us from forming meaningful relationships?

Photo by Decur

In Nancy Baym's book, Personal Connections in the Digital Age, she claims that rhetoric about electronic communication matters because it is reflective-- it is one of the best places to see the desires and fears of an individual or a society.

Since I started "Meditating on Media", many people who read my blog have expressed to me their perspectives about living in the digital age, and often send me links to interesting dialog about digital media. This past week, My friend Chestina shared some interesting art with me that critiques our use of technology, specifically social media. I want to try to speculate a bit on what deeper concerns these signify.

The critique is in the form of a set of images that got popularized online with the hashtag #ThisGeneration (I've included a few below but see here for more). The images are a set of photoshoped memes made by Ajit Johnson Nirmal that illustrate the current generation as having too big of a dependency on technology. The images were featured on the artist's tumblr at the end of March and received over 140,000 notes in one week.

These images have resonated with some viewers, quick to vent about how disconnected and lazy the internet makes us, but others have gotten very defensive about such claims. Many parodies have been made to reverse the anti-technology claims, and are circulating Tumblr right now. Additionally, another hashtag has emerged to counter these claims: #LastGeneration (see twitter screen shots below for various examples).

By looking at the original memes and the following reactions on social media, we can see that talking about electronic communication has stirred the emotions of many, allowing us to see some of our cultural fears and hopes more clearly. The original artwork shows a concern that we are addicted to technology-- choosing it over books and even over water, which is isolating us and making us dumb down our experiences of life. Many responses counter this by pointing out the irony of using a hashtag and social media to bash that very electronic media. Others have responded by pointing out the positive affordances of new media (like @LaurenEldekvist above). 

What does this all say about our society? Well, a lot. There are infinite interpretations of how we could use this art and its responses to speculate on what's going on in our society's collective psyche. That's why it's so cool to look not only at how people are using media, but how people are talking about it! 

I think the biggest underlying theme that I've taken away from looking through the #ThisGeneration posts is that modern technology has truly become ubiquitous in our culture, which is comforting for some people and terrifying for others. As for me, I feel the whole spectrum. 

Our current means of electronic communication have basically become necessities. I don't think I could practically make it through school at all without a computer to do research on, write papers, or receive important information via email and web updates. I also don't think I could emotionally make it through school without my phone to connect me to loved ones hundreds of miles away, or coordinate with my friends and peers close by. Clearly, I don't need this communication technology for my basic survival needs, but I do need it to maintain the current lifestyle I enjoy. That scares me! 

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I am afraid of being dependent on this technology because it costs money to make and maintain, which is a source of stress for me. I also think about how this technology costs the environment in the forms of resources and energy. This technology has social costs, including the exploitation of labor to make it. This technology has health costs, such as potentially harmful radiation and the debatable psychological addiction. Yet despite all of this, I use these devices everyday, and so does pretty much everyone else I encounter. It makes life easier, more fun, and helps us stay connected to each other and aware of what is happening in the world. Even those criticizing our use of electronic communication are doing so through this technology. 

Anyone who has been keeping up with my blog posts for the past few months knows that I am critical of our use of technology, but also incredibly optimistic about all of the opportunity it opens up. I have talked about how it can be used to spread happiness, how it can create community spaces, how it can contribute to emotional healing, and more. The internet has catalyzed many social movements and brought about justice for marginalized people whose voices wouldn't otherwise have as far of a reach. Overall, my Interpersonal Media studies in conjunction with my daily experiences using digital media show me just how complex and nuanced our use of these technologies is.

I am part of a generation that incorporates electronic devices into almost all aspects of life. I don't desire or foresee us reverting from this position, but I do hope that we can move forward more mindfully. Having discussion about the harms and benefits of our media usage is important. Being self-aware of the amount of time spent online is healthy. And I strongly feel that taking into account the social and environmental costs is something we need to have more dialog about, all generations. 

Photo By MERIMART

~* What do you think the #ThisGeneration art and responses says about the fears and hopes of our culture? How do you see us moving forward? *~  

Fear of Missing out? Hyperreality: An Exploration of Why We Post and What it Does to Us

In my Media Theory class, we have talked about how sometimes signs, symbols, and icons can mean more to people than the reality they represent. This idea is sometimes referred to in academia as hyperreality.

 

Sock Images from Hotsox.com

We talked about how the commodification and digital circulation of art (such as the Mona Lisa, which can be found on clothing, billboards, websites and more) and images of monuments (such as the golden gate bridge, statue of liberty, or eiffel tower) can be valued more than the original. We discussed how circulating the image so widely can mean that if/when the object is seen in its original form, it doesn’t often meet the hype of its popularity.

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Personally, I notice this affecting my perception of reality. Sometimes in nature when I see something beautiful I find myself saying “that doesn’t look real!”. Or I find myself comparing physical reality to digital symbols-- saying that something looks like a picture I’ve seen, or mentally imposing emojis into a situation.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show from emoji'd screencaps

Beyond seeing how growing up with access to virtual reality has partially shaped my perception of the world, this discussion in my theory class got me thinking about social media and online profiles as a sort of collection of symbols for ourselves. For example, often at concerts or other events I notice people snap-chatting the event more than actually participating, or spending a whole occasion just taking photos.

Image Source: Vivvid on Tumblr

I have definitely met people who I feel portray themselves online very differently from how I encounter them in embodied reality. As I mentioned in my post “Can an Aura be Liked, Tweeted, or Reblogged?”, Nancy Baym says that, “Authentic self representation is not always a simple question of true and false”. As I touched on in my other post, “Embracing Electronic Escapism”, Virtual spaces can act as a safe space for people to explore different facets of their identity. In Walther & Park’s Handbook for Interpersonal Communication, they claim that instead of having a binary of the online vs. real self, we should see both virtual and physical selves as one continuum of expression. As much as I acknowledge and support this idea, I can’t help but notice how these online entities change the way we interact interpersonally.

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As I observe people engaging in social media more frequently, I notice that embodied activities become repurposed for documentation as symbols of “fun” or “involvement” rather than actually participating for the sake of being present. “FoMO” or “Fear of Missing Out” is a phenomenon widely written about regarding social anxiety induced by being constantly bombarded by updates and images of people’s sensationalized lives. In Daniel Miller’s “Tales From Facebook” one woman openly admits attending social events with the main purpose of trying to get a cool new profile picture. One example from my own life was my senior prom. Below is a picture of me before going to the actual dance. I spent a good amount of time picking out a dress, curling my hair, etc. A bunch of friends met up before hand at an different location than the dance for the sole purpose of taking pictures. To be honest, I was more interested in taking pictures than the actual dance itself. It is such a customary action, I didn’t even stop to question the silliness of it.

Senior Prom, 2013

Now I want to be very clear that I am not trying to shame anyone who takes photos or uses social media to share events in their life-- I do this all the time! Even though getting all dressed up to take pictures rather than simply enjoy others’ company is silly, it was pretty fun. The point I’m trying to make in connecting hyperreality to our social media usage, is that I think it is healthy for me to be more aware of my actions and make sure that when I am documenting my life I am appreciating the present in conjunction. Engaging in virtual reality doesn’t have to be “fake” or detract from our embodied lives, but I believe that it takes using media mindfully, in moderation, to ensure so. 

Here’s something I’ve been trying: Next time you reach for your phone to take a picture of something, maybe try to meditate for a moment on the purpose for capturing the image, and again on the purpose for sharing it. Does this intention align with your values? Uplift others? Enhance the experience of the moment? Generally make you feel good?

If you find yourself reflecting in this way, I would love for you to use the hashtag #mediamindfully so I can see your post and maybe read about your intention for it!