• How do notable individuals use social media?

The answer to this question depends on the nature of that notable individual’s “business”. For someone like Jody Vance who “is paid for her opinions”, appearing authentic on social media would function as a way to present her credibility, which in turn would help to establish her brand as an authentic commentator (Miller). For people whose occupations require high levels of professional input such as lawyers and government officials, social media use may be constrained, as their comments and behaviors online are under serious scrutiny. In a word, since social media is a channel that represents us for both our profession and our personal qualities, people have to gauge their social media use that best reflects the qualities that are valued by their professions.

Also, for notable individuals, since they could reach a large number of people, it is also possible for them to harness the wisdom of the collective. People could turn to their followers for ideas and information, as well as engaging with their followers, which could be valuable information sources in themselves (Hirst).

  •  What are the benefits of being in the public eye and having a PLN?

One of the major benefits associated with being in the public eye and having a PLN is that people would have more available opportunities presented to them. Just as Jody Vance explained in the video, as soon as she was laid off, a new job opportunity was presented to her by someone she had not even met in person before (Miller). Being in the public eye makes it possible that people could and would form connections with you, and being in the public eye also makes information more available, which in turn makes it possible for other people to identify opportunities that are suitable for you. And just as mentioned in the last answer, being in the public eye and having a PLN means that you have more opportunities to harness information from other people (Hirst). Being in the public eye indicates reputation, which in turn means possibly heavier influence on social media. Heavier social media influence would transfer into a larger base of followers, which means that people could connect with more people, who are potential valuable information sources.

  • Building community with online tools provided by the employer can be limiting, what are the perceived
    restrictions and benefits?

One of the major perceived restrictions is that when building community with online tools provided by the employer, people often have to prioritize the goal of making money, which could limit discussion and communication. Take journalists for an example. Journalists engage in social media largely because they have to harness contents that could make news and generate profits (Hirst). In these cases, there is little real communication and engagement happening between these journalists and the people (Hirst). Another major restriction is that when building community with online tools provided by the employer, people do not only represent themselves, but also represent the employers that they work for. In that sense, anything they say could be associated with their employers, which makes it necessary that people be extra cautious with their presence online. Just as Jody Vance said in the video, she is able to be vocal on social media largely because in addition to her employment, she has a business herself, which makes it possible that she could represent herself authentically as her own brand (Miller).

One of the major benefits associated with using online tools provided by the employer is that it helps to prove one’s credibility. Take journalists again for an example. Journalists would appear more professional and credible on social media if they are verified as journalists working for a major news agency, which in turn would make people more willing to listen to them, and to share information with them.

  •  Delivering information in a connected society requires verifiable resources, how to build a PLN to rely on?

NowThis has provided a model that could be referenced to (Hirst). NowThis relies on social media to harness information regarding news worth covering, and would rely on professionals to produce new coverage (Hirst). Although the model is flawed, it has great implications as to how an effective PLN works. Just like NowThis, an effective PLN should have both enough participants so that it has multiple sources of information and professionals within the network so that information is researched and examined.

  •  How do those, who are veteran storytellers, minimize risk in sharing misinformation?

Just as Jody Vance said in the video, knowing the bottom line is the key on how to minimize the risk in sharing misinformation. Here, the bottom line refers to both the rules of the particular social media platform one is using, and personal standards that one sets for him/herself. Being familiar with the rules of social media platforms helps to prevent misconduct, one of which is sharing misinformation. Having strong personal standards helps one to make clear judgment regarding what to share and what not to share. Such caution would help to minimize the risk in sharing misinformation.

References

Hirst, M. (2018). Navigating Social Journalism: A Handbook for Media Literacy and Citizen Journalism (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/10.4324/9781315401263

 Miller, J. “EDCI 338 – 2021 – 03 – 21 JODY VANCE.” 03 Mar. 2021. doi: https://.youtube.com/watchv=dgZOJgJKdyl&feature=youtu.be