Internetsociologi

This post is a contribution to kullins post - from the blog Media Culpa (written in English) - interpretation of the Swedish prime minster Fredrik Rheinfeldts opening in a talk from last week on the theme “The New Swedish Model: A Reform Agenda for Growth and the Environment” to students at the The London School of Economics and Political Science.
I will begin to recite the opening, then presenting kellins interpretation and than mine.

“It is a pleasure to be here at LSE. Anybody who wants to study globalisation should start at this institution. I believe you have the highest proportion of international students in the world.
And you are smart.

I am told that you borrow four times as many books as the average UK student. Obviously you do not spend too much time on

Facebook
YouTube
MySpace”

The main idea that kullin present is that books are educating, but that “social networks” should not be neglected in the construction of new ideas and influences and to open up new perspective, to stay in tune with a evolving “networked world”.

Kullin means that this websites is a mean for people to be competitive in “an increasingly integrated world economy we need to participate where new ideas emerge.” Which is out of tune with the intentions of the opening, I agree to this point and maybe also Rheinfeldt too.

This sure sounds nice, but not everyone uses the media in the same way. I think that a common interpretation and a common use of the mentioned social websites is leisure and not for networking in the sense that kullin talks about the websites. To this, there is an informal learning which can be very valuable and question the use of books as a mean to acquire knowledge. But kellins interpretation is not about learning, which is what Rheinfeldt is talking about. But it is about to act on certain action possibilities which is afforded by the media.

Another thing is the context where Rheinfeldt is talking, at a school towards students who are studying globalization. Sure thing, the Internet and the products from Internet migrate over distances tie disparate places, spaces and times together in a fast speed in multilateral relations of uses. This is globalization and you need to see the media and use it to understand it. Not just to read books about it!

The globalization must also be reflected upon, knowledge and material must be acquired either through the media of Internet or another media, such as the book or in everyday life. But probably you won´t find much detailed works on globalization on the mentioned sites, at least not at Facebook and MySpace. Still, there is a possibility to have a mediated sphere of discussion about globalization there. YouTube on the other hand gives access to theoretical material and question prior linear media with it´s non-linearity. On the other hand a book can be read non-linear, and sometimes it is done that way. The participatory effects of social media must be taken in account as a collective intelligence about science, politics and so on, but that is not the common use of it! That is the whole issue here! Rheinfeldt does not say how the websites is used, and here lies the core source in the different interpretations.

Yet another thing that has not been mentioned at all to be regarded is the diffrent mash-ups and social applications derived from the websites and the possibilties of the uses of these for the above mentioned causes.

So to wrap up!

• Social media and participatory media (such as YouTube, MySpace and Facebook) holds a great potential for (informal and formal) learning.

• Globalization is can be better understood when global media is used

• Social media open up new perspectives and action possibilities which extend or supplement book reading.

• Also the websites engage people in valuable social networks and enable people to create innovations with potential to be widespread and profitable (therefore creating a new space for employment)

• The existence of the notion that the mentioned websites is just for leisure. The use is not for participation in rational debate (even thou the possibility exists). Probably the most common use of them, and therefore a common connotation, is for fulfillment and enjoyment and informal learning of internemediated norms and such.