Controlling our Digital Presence and Identity

It was very easy for me to review all my social media accounts and determine what my digital presence and identity is. The fact is that I only have a couple: Facebook and Twitter. Although Facebook is my most prominent of the two, I do have a small digital presence on Twitter. I would say what I don’t post on Facebook tell more about me than what I do post. By that, I mean that I rarely post.  So for me, it’s more about creating a digital identity that I would want to be known for.

But the fact, it is easy to forget that what we post online can remain online even if we delete it and this can potentially hurt our career and relationships. Anything we choose to upload, tweet, reblog, favorite, “like”, can be endless and very hard to erase. Whether our information is shared intentionally or unintentionally, our digital footprint is being gathered by various companies and employers and often used to obtain personal information about us. According to Cohen and Kenny “from the moment you turned on your first computer and double-clicked on the icon for the web browser of your choice, you have created an abundance of personal information, available through search engines such as Google or Yahoo!” (207). That is why it is far better to be in control of our digital identity than to allow something to take control. But whether we are branding, as in my case, or re-branding, it is important to be aware of the information that is out there about us. Even if we didn’t post the information, it may be attached to someone else’s post.

But how do we control our digital identity? Understanding the significance of our digital footprint is an important step in protecting our online identity. Cohen and Kenny (pp. 205-206) ask readers to consider what their online identity is and then take charge of it. To answer this question takes some thought, not because it is a hard question but because it is an important one and starts with knowing what we do everyday that is recorded. That doesn’t mean that we should be afraid to go online and visit sites. The best thing to do is not to stay offline but to be conscious of what we post.

The best way to control our digital identity is by deciding what communities we want to be a part of and what content we want to post. We should also decide what social media profiles we want to use such as LinkedIn and Facebook. Also important is to use positive aspects to help create our personal branding for example, a personal blog can highlight our strengths and personality. Finally, we should realize that controlling our digital presence and identity is long-term challenge that requires dedication and persistence.

The Online Jodieann

Creating a online brand is almost like putting on a Halloween costume and becoming the person you’ve always aspired to be. Online sites afford many individuals a chance to escape their drab life and become their alter ego or a exaggerated person. This may be true for most people and myself as well. I am on several social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, OkCupid. With each social media sites there is a certain type of image one must uphold to be able to engage within that community. I portray myself online as a very well-put together individual who engages in thoughtful discussions regarding politics, current events, quotes, fun things that happen in my life aka shareable moments, rants, etc. My positioning online gives the impression, which is true, of a progressive, fashionable, savvy, and holistic thinker who likes coffee and inspirational quotes. In many ways I am proud of my digital story telling ability because I know I could represent various brands successfully and I will uphold the image of the brand. Also, I have started a lovely series which I call the Daily Takeaway, each day I write 3-5 inspirational quote or takeaway and use the hashtag #DayNumberoftheDay. It’s been pretty cool, I hope to look back 365 from now and have a transformative outlook on my growth as an individual. I’m not quite sure why I started the series but I love doing it.

Does your online identity convey to the audience your future goals and ambitions?

My online personality perfectly explain who I am and who I want and will become. I do a very good job of creating my personal online brand. I have realized that it is what you physically put online that gives people a certain impression of you. In a way you have to create the ideal persona that you want to sell to people— its sort of genius. I do think people realize that I am genuine online as I am in person.

Does it tell the audience what you do for a living or hope to do for a career?

Yes, in my blurb section I give a nod to my profession as a writer. If someone was to stalk my Twitter timeline and come across posts from 11 months ago they would find links to press release that I wrote on CUNY Newswire. I am very much professional online but I know that my idea of professional and someone else’s interpretation are very different.

What assumptions would someone make about your personality?

The “Online” Jodieann is just as lovely as she is in person. My online persona is the girl you could imagine sitting with in a coffee shop, engaging in conversations of all sorts. The persona is relatable in many ways, the candor, the wit, the easy going personality, the professionalism, graciousness. My online persona embodies all my real life traits online very pleasantly. One of the key takeaways I hope my persona conveys most of all is that Jodieann is an intelligent young woman with a strong voice and a clear mission of achieving all her goals.

My Nonexistent Social Media Identity

Upon viewing my Facebook profile, the first thing I noticed was that Facebook suggested I update my cover photo, add a short bio, edit info already visible to others, and add featured photos. In three words, I can describe my online identity as inactive, uninteractive, and quiet. Unlike users who share on their social media sites that they participate in, I barely share or interact with others on my Facebook page at all. The last thing I did on my page was update my profile picture which was August 10, 2015.

I cannot call myself a tech savvy user no more than I can call myself a savvy user of my social media account because according to Cohen and Kenny,  “a savvy user of digital media does not consume media, but participates in all of the media tools offered” (200). I see myself as a user behind the screen watching everyone else interact with each other, while I  lack the practice of sharing content for my audience to interact with. Since creating my Facebook account in 2008, I have yet to update the “about” section where people should be able to get a sense of my personality, career goals, and interests. If anyone was to see my profile today, they would think I currently work at Forever 21 which I currently no longer work for the company and that I graduated from high school and did not go on to continue college.

My Facebook page is limited to my friends only, all others outside of my realm of friends cannot view the contents if my page. Essentially, my Facebook page is a way to keep up with my family back home in Nigeria as well as keeping me updated through their page.  Other than that, my account is not utilized to its full potential and I definitely need to make some changes. I also have a Pinterest account that I use slightly more than my Facebook account, however, I can definitely work more obvious profile content. Opening my personal page and skimming through my board anyone can see that I love nail polish, I am a woman of God, I have natural hair, and I live fashion. My boards depict what I take interest in but my “about” section is completely blank. After reading Cohen and Kenny, I am interested in branding myself and revamping my accounts so people who view my page can get a sense of who I am. That may also mean, adding additional social media platforms to better brand or represent myself for the near future.

To Delete or Not to Delete?

It never occurs to us that what we post online sort of remains there…forever? Seems quite dramatic to say that but it is actually not. The age of the internet so to speak has enabled us to recreate ourselves or in other words represent ourselves in the way we want to be seen. When we create an online profile we create a depiction on how we want to be seen: we primp, polish, include, and exclude things about ourselves to coin the identity we want to exude. We brand ourselves in this act. We create a persona or identity so to speak and do all we can to uphold that identity but what we engage or participate in, and these things that we do are always present and will remain a part of ourselves as trace.

Now, in understanding of the internet all that we create, share, and participate online has all contributed to the building of the internet itself. The conversations, both controversial and  agreement has led to the building of communities. Now as I said before, what we post online remains forever. These brands of who we are remain.  “In theory, the right to be forgotten addresses an urgent problem in the digital age: it is very hard to escape your past on the Internet now that every photo, status update, and tweet lives forever in the cloud” (88, Rosen). Over the years people have been against this ‘ploy’ of the internet. It seems as though the only people who have this objection to the duration or longevity of a post are those who post something ridiculously embarrassing or controversial and after realize the effects it causes on either employment or their ‘identity’ so to speak.  People have brought to the table the idea that whatever is posted should have the ability to be deleted…forever.

The golden rule of the internet has and will always be, “if you do not want something seen do not post it”. A simple rule to follow, but however in this day in age everyone feels the need to generate conversation, participate online, and share, share, share! My point is that if there is a right to delete and by delete I mean to erase all trace, meaning all screenshots, shared, and bookmarks of that said image or video then there should be an understanding as to what uploading actually entails. When you post you are explicitly giving permission for people to share, ridicule, or praise. Now that post goes on to create conversation and users and composers go onto create new ideas from that said post. What we contribute to the internet has continued to create more content and stimulate the minds of others. If things had the right to be erased then all that surround them, incorporate them, justify them, and raise because of them would then too be erased. What we post has not only contributed to the branding of who we say to be but also the branding of others and the ideas of others.

As in Cohen and Kenny’s, “The Online Personal Brand” analyzes and synthesizes the ideas that inherently work together in order to create an identity. When I looked upon the social medias I had I realized that I had posted only what I wanted people to see. There were no embarrassing photos. I was polished. I represented myself in the best filter possible. The choice to share only certain things was both a constraint and affordance for me; it also created the opportunity for me to brand myself in such a way that either encourages curiosity or discourages it. The fact of the matter is that this all stems from a legal issue. Defamation of ones character as mentioned in the Carroll chapter is one of the underlining reasons as to why the issue for deletion of online publications has arisen. As we can agree certain issues arise when we post things but the question is under what guidelines or stipulations is it deletion necessary? Is it ever necessary to delete and if we ever delete what does this mean for the internet? Will the internet have less viable sources or ideas in circulation? Does the right to delete create more problems than it solves? 

Response 10- Digital presence and identity

Cohen &Kenny (Page 205/06)

For this exercise I looked through my two most used social media sites, Twitter and Facebook. My facebook is completely private only friends are able to view my posts, twitter however is an open door it is totally public. I also used timehop, which is an app that shows you what you posted years back on this date, so one, two or even as far as six years back can be viewed (presuming you’ve had the account that long). I will also add that upon preparing from graduation from my Alma matter my adviser suggested that I clean up my media presence and make a professional accounts and recreational ones. So I did just that, making a twitter handle and facebook page which i could share on my linkedin (I did not make a “professional” instagram I just cleaned up my current one) and then keeping my recreational ones private and free of my real name and email address. For this exercise I will be analyzing the social media pages I created to “brand” myself as an emerging professional.

Does your online identity convey to the audience your future goals and ambitions?

My twitter handle @pezz718 does in some ways convey my goals and ambitions, if you click the link you can see my bio lists that I am a tax preparer, manager, student and mother. So it lists the three main focuses of my life. If you then scroll through my tweets you’ll see that sometimes my activity can be infrequent but the theme is overall the same. I like to share current event articles from various news outlets, sometimes with commentary sometimes without. I will only retweet or post things that are of interest to me or that I have opinions on but I am always careful to word things diplomatically. Last but not least I include tidbits of my personality, my life and what I might be up to at the moment.

My facebook however is somewhat opposite, I post infrequently on facebook and when i do its mainly to update my family or friends in other states on what Ava and I have been up to. In the last year my cluster of posts came around holidays or other milestones, like the first day of school or a personal achievement. Though I don’t post often on my views or beliefs I have posted about going back to school and what i am going for.

Does it tell the audience what you do for a living or hope to do for a career?

On both my twitter and facebook it is fairly easy to tell what I currently do and what I aspire to do. On twitter as I mentioned above my header (right under my profile picture) states what I do, that i’m a student as well as a mother. If you read my tweets going back you can see when I got accepted and signed onto the major here at NYCCT. On facebook it’s easier to see because it lists the school and the major as well as how far along I am. However you have to rely on my status updates to understand where I plan to go with this degree.

What assumptions would someone make about your personality?

I would hope that people would assume that I am, organized, educated, motivated and unique. I share a variety of things on all my pages, current events, entertainment and just my own quirky observations that I would hope there is enough insight into my life to be helpful but not too much where it clouds the line of professionalism.

Final Project Proposal

Throughout this semester we have covered a variety of new media trends and how they change how we use the affordances of social media. For my project I would like to focus on virility and how stories, ideas and even current fads spread.

My focus or main tool will be twitter as that is my favorite social media platform, it is also the one that changes the fastest and is the most fluid in its trends. I propose following two verified (twitter’s label for reputable users) sources, one being entertainment or trends and one being news and current events. At this moment I have two main twitter feeds I would like to track the first being Cosmopolitan and the other being CNN.

My goal is to sit down daily and track both accounts daily activity and then record their virility. I will ask the following questions,

  1. Which account posted more, was it frequent throughout the day or grouped together?
  2. Which account got more retweets or shares, mentions and overall response?
  3. Were there any similarities in the stories, if so how were the reporting of the events different?
  4. Which account saw a more positive user engagement? Why might that be?

My goal is to see what type of information a twitter user notices and gives reaction to. For example does a political story about Syria or a “Top 5” blog from Cosmo rake in more web-traffic?

We as a society do most of our day to day activities online but how much of that information do we actually process and are we jaded or indifferent to the current events of the world and more interested in what’s keeping us entertained. By following both these twitter feeds over a month’s time I hope to see overall which twitter account garnishes more regular recognition and engagement. Both accounts are big names in their respective worlds and are widely recognized names.

At the end of the project I plan to answer the following in my final product,

  1. Which account consistently had more user engagement? Was it positive, negative or neutral?
  2. Which account posted more regularly and was that a factor?
  3. Formulate a hypothesis with the collected data as to why one was more favored over the other.
  4. Does this data suggest a change in the type of information we prefer to see online?

Viral posts are a norm online and often we will see the same story told through multiple channels and we all have a favorite source. However is that source a cookie cutter news outlet like CNN or FOX or is it a blog like the gothamist or Cosmo. I hope to gage whether or not there is a preference among twitter users and if so what it is.

The only variation to my project that i am on the fence about is potentially following two types of each account for example CNN and FOX and Cosmo and US weekly to better back up any results i may find. Overall though the general idea is news vs. entertainment.

Journalism & Politics: The Perfect Duo

The topic I will be exploring is the flow of social media in journalism, specifically in regards to politics. With the presidential elections becoming a popular topic in the digital world, it is clearest to track the development of connected discourses. The idea came from the influence of social media in traditional journalism as explored in Week 5 of the semester. With networking platforms allowing further dialogue outside of the tradition confines of journalism and politics there is much to observe and participate. Some of the mediums that would be used are live tweeting during debates and joining discourses surrounding Facebook and political blogs. The goal of the project is to see if there is a breakdown in the makeup of traditional journalism and politics when social media is added. The platforms that will play a major role in my research are:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Wikipedia

With the increase in media based journalism, election based stories are being distributed faster and disregarded with a similar speed. However, when looking at some of the comments included in news reports on different platforms there is a level of discourse that is new to the political world.

Possible questions:

  1. How can I explore this topic in the best way?
  2. How have politics, culture, and media started to blend?
  3. Where is the divide between traditional journalism and how is that boundary becoming less effective?

Online Personal Branding – Digital Footprints

My project is about online personal branding. The purpose of my project is to show how people brand themselves online by expressing their interest, beliefs, ethos, values, talents and skills, and how social media plays a significant role in how our peers and employers perceive us. I am interested in this project because an online identity is a growing trend and is very important in today’s society.

This project will teach me how to use social media platforms to create a digital footprint and analyze how I can build my reputation by contributing to online communities. This project will address the following questions:

  • what do you want to be known for?
  • what differentiates you from everyone else?
  • where are your passion areas?
  • who are you at your core?
  • what makes you unique?
  • what do you do everyday that is true to you?
  • what content do you want to share?
  • how do you want to be perceived?
  • what is your authentic brand?
  • how can you best enhance social relationships?

This project will also act as a quick reference guide to personal branding. With the growing job market, it is important to create contacts that will provide options for establishing networks and embrace social media. I will examine blogging, social streaming, video channels, and websites as mediums for networking and reputation building.

I will discuss the following steps to building a personal brand and the tools to engage on social media and develop an authentic voice:

  • identifying personal passions
    • likes, dislikes, unique creativity and personal style, natural talents and gifts
  • Developing a core message
    • mission statement
    • own unique view
  • Choosing web mediums
    • domain name
    • content management
    • creating a theme
  • Blogging and starting a website
    • embedding videos, presentations, and images
  • Actively participating in the following communities:
    • Twitter
    • facebook
    • linkedIn
    • youtube
    • google+
  • Using Social Media Dashboard

I will discuss some of the following advantages that can result from having a personal brand:

  • Increased recognition
  • opportunities
  • partnerships

Sources:

quicksprout.com/the-complete-guide-to-building-your-personal-brand/
Producing New and Digital Media: Your Guide to Savvy Use of the Web, Cohen and Kenny

Visual Rhetoric and Culture

Since the emergence of digital media, it has led to the creation of how various online communities play a role in shaping visual rhetoric and culture. An online community is a group of people with common interests who use the Internet (web sites, email, instant messaging, etc.) to communicate, work together and pursue their interests over time. Each of these communities has attracted individuals of all kinds to participate within that community of shared interest. Some of the communities are within platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, OkCupid, Buzz Feed, and Flickr to name a few. When I examined all these communities there was one common thread, many individuals used photos as a way to use visual rhetoric/ visual storytelling to quantify themselves. This had led me to several question, Do photos need content? Are images cultural? How has multimedia affected visual storytelling?

The key elements of my project are:

*Visual language

*Are images cultural?

*Multimedia storytelling

I want to explore the following questions “Has our cultural beliefs affected the way we interpret a image and why does it affect the way the see a image?” Over the span of all of our lives we have digested millions of images. Many of these images has shaped how we perceive the world and it has been reinforced by digital media. The visual language/ visual rhetoric, multimedia storytelling, and how our cultural beliefs leads to misinterpretation of an image has affected how we quantify ourselves and the people around us. Perhaps culture does not only play a role in who we are but severely affects how we see the world. Often times the media reinforces their interpretations of an image and try to feed it down viewers throats. This can have many affect on the psyche’s development, whether for good or for bad.

For this project I propose an experiment in which I will research 5-10 images with and without content and interview people to see how they interpret them. These images will stem from online sites such a Human of New York, famous paintings, images that have been remixed into memes. In my research I hope to identify how different cultures interpret visual images with and without content. Secondly, by . I want to examine the phycology, environmental factors, traumatic events, fear, and age to chart how those factors play a role in how our psyche interprets an image. I hope to shine a new light on how we interpret images and perhaps how we can begin to un-train our eyes. I want to provoke the questions, are we an extension of all the images we have seen throughout our lives.

Questions:

  1. How does cultural beliefs affect visual storytelling?
  2. Can an image stand without content?
  3. Is age an important factor when one views an image?
  4. What factors play a part in interpretation?
  5. How does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  6. Why does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  7. Can we un-train our eyes?
  8. Are your mind and body performing better?

 

Sources

“Producing New and Digital Media”-Cohen and Kenny

“Writing & Editing for Digital Media”- Carroll

Wikipedia

 

 

Unavailable.

Throughout the semester we have covered a wide range of topics but in all of them we always seemed to return the topic of availability. We question time and time again that in this day in age is it possible to be unavailable? And what does it actually mean to be unavailable in a world where not being able to reach someone is a sign of tardiness and carelessness.

When thinking of a possible project idea I focused on three main topics that interests me:

  1. Availability
  2. Attention structures
  3. Participation

After focusing in on these three topics I came to realize that they each play a part in tackling the question of, “Do we have the ability to ever become completely unavailable? ” First of all, availability is by far one of the biggest affordances and constraints of the internet. Social media has allowed us to constantly be in touch. We can tag, track, and see when we’ve read each other’s messages. All of these affordances have in a way lead us to always be online even when we aren’t. Being available online means you are expected to participate in conversation both personal and global. As an individual of an online community you have the responsibility to share, comment and create and if you do not you are therefore doing that community a disservice. Your participation is always needed and wanted on both your and your audiences’ end. This want and need to participate ultimately allows us to choose whether we are or are not available.  It also means that you are aware of what is going on around you and you are in a way forced to take part or else you are “creeping”.  Being available has also had an impact in the way we divide our attention. What we focus on and how we focus on these things ultimately effects our participation and our availability. These three concepts all interact and interfere with our ability to actually disconnect and become unavailable in a world that demands availability.

For this project I propose an experiment in which I will purposely disconnect myself from all social media sites that I participate in for two weeks. In those two weeks I will vlog, blog, and capture photographs daily about how I am dealing with not being available online. In tracking this I want to highlight the shift in myself and the transition from an avid online user to someone who has become “unavailable” which will be captured daily via video interviews. Secondly, by conducting research that almost entirely embarks on the premise of availability and the affordances and constraints it entails I will try to also highlight the psychological effects this disconnect has upon an individual such as anxiety, worry, detachment etc.  I hope to  to demonstrate that availability has changed our wants,needs, and interpretations of people, persons, and things. I also hope to answer the question of if we are truly able to become unavailable or not.

Possible questions:

  1. How are you feeling today without your online presence?
  2. Have you noticed a change in yourself?
  3. How has your relationship with your smart device changed?
  4. What will you or have you done to replace the time you spent being available online?
  5. What other activities have you been participating in?
  6. How has your attention shifted? Has it shifted?

Research Materials (thus far):

Cohen & Kenny

Jones & Hanfer

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/profile-unavailable-mean-facebook-72521.html

http://www.becomingminimalist.com/unplug-please/

http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/challenge-to-disconnect/