Discuss three qualities that distinguish social media from face-to-face communication. What impact do they have on the communication process?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

- Three of the following seven qualities should be referenced in response:
* Interactivity: Because social media foster interactivity, they also lead to new possibilities to remain connected and engaged with others.
* Temporal Structure: Face-to-face communication is instantaneous-you say something to your friend, and almost immediately he responds with verbal and nonverbal messages. Certain forms of social media may not feature this luxury.
* Social Cues: Many of the challenges we experience with social media derive from a lack of social cues. Face-to-face social cues often include facial expression, vocal tone, eye contact, and hand gestures.
* Replicability: Face-to-face conversations are difficult, if not impossible, to replicate. Social media's replicability means that communication can occur in an environment that makes it easy to record and redistribute past messages.
* Storage: In many ways, face-to-face conversations, once they occur, are gone forever. Social media's ability for storage allows messages to be digitally saved and made accessible to other people.
* Reach: Unlike face-to-face communication, social media have tremendous reach, or the ability to connect with individuals in local and long-distance places. Face-to-face communication is often limited to those individuals who can fit in a particular room.
* Mobility: The various forms of social media feature varying degrees of mobility, or the extent to which a device is portable or stationary. Unlike social media, face-to-face communication is mobile to the extent that we are able to walk, run, or travel to a particular location.