November 9th – November 15th
Community communications go beyond blogs and social media shares, how does a PLN help and hinder the development of thoughts and ideas in public discourse – especially when addressing our differences?
A PLN helps the development of thoughts and ideas in public discourse because it provides a platform for individuals to share their perspectives. It enables people to communicate their thoughts and ideas publicly with others. When addressing our differences, a PLN is helpful because it provides a network of resources to gain perspective on both sides of an issue. When a PLN that is factually accurate and values media literacy, it is likely that content is being shared that is unbiased and provides information on both sides of a debate. Harrison Mooney provides a good example of how a PLN can be helpful in the development of thoughts and ideas. He discusses how there are significant differences between authors of different races, and that when consuming media regarding racism, you should strongly consider your source (2020). His recommendation based on his own experience is that “it is crucial to be looking always for the smartest people writing and thinking about race and culture from a non white perspective. It turns out to inform you across disciplines.” (Mooney, 2020). When developing thoughts and ideas on matters that consider our differences, a PLN can be helpful to consider a range of perspectives.
How can a PLN be curated to minimize bias and expand knowledge of the lives of others?
It is beneficial to curate a PLN that minimizes bias and expands knowledge of the lives of others because it provides you with new insights and perspectives on issues. Having a diverse, inclusive PLN can aid in curating a PLN that minimizes bias. This has been discussed in previous posts at length. An additional way to minimize bias and expand knowledge of the lives of others is to search for opposing or contradicting perspectives using your PLN. An example of this could be looking at hashtags on Twitter. As described in Chapter 4 of Social Media: Communication, Sharing and Visibility, during the UK election in 2015 the most popular hashtag was “#GE2015.” This hashtag was striking because when looking at the content containing this hashtag, it had contributions from all sides of the debate, it was a “keiladiscope of perspectives on the election,” (Meikle, 2016). Meikle infers that following #GE2015 throughout the day would be exposed to a more diverse perspective than they would from any preferred newspaper or TV channel. By using a hashtag such as this, you gain a new perspective, the content you see is not biased towards one side, and you learn about people’s personal experiences and opinions.
How does the identity of who you are, fit into your PLN?
I think the identity of who you are fits into your PLN in a significant way, although at times I feel that it is not representative of who you are as a person. Your interests and perspectives are shared using a PLN, but there is an enormous amount of your identity that remains sheltered from public view. The content that you see and conversations that you engage in represents your identity within your PLN. It is a depiction of you as a person, whether it is accurate or not. Harrison Mooney recommended one person whose perspective he found to be very interesting on social media and in literature; Tressie McMillan Cottom. When researching her, I came across a set of her Tweets from 2014-2015 that describe her perspective on Twitter’s use of the “blue checkmark” as a status marker. I think this is an interesting thing to consider when discussing how your identity fits into your PLN. The blue checkmark symbolizes external status, and yet there is shock that people treat it as such (Cottom, 2015). If someone was to have a blue checkmark next to their twitter, it would indicate that they have a superior status to someone who does not have that symbol next to their name within that PLN. If the identity of who you are is reliant on your PLN or Twitter, this person would likely have a higher status in their life outside of their PLN as well. The blue check mark bestows a status or symbolized external status upon the person, although it takes no responsibility for the effect it has (Cottom, 2015).
Do you include professional and personal boundaries?
I feel that I include professional and personal boundaries within my PLN because I am a firm believer that boundaries are of significant importance. A person that I admire very much is Brene Brown. She is a researcher, academic, and genuine person that has drastically changed my perspective on many issues. Throughout her books and on her podcast, she speaks at length about setting boundaries and explains why they are beneficial to put into place. She describes setting boundaries as “making clear what’s okay, and what’s not okay, and why” (Brown, 2018). I feel that her guidance has helped me set boundaries within my personal life and within my PLN. It is important to have both professional and personal boundaries, and they often do look different. An example of a professional boundary that I have set for myself is not checking work or school related sites (email, BrightSpaces etc.) after 8pm. This is so I am able to wind down at the end of the night and focus on myself and getting rest. A boundary that I set in my personal life is not checking my social media past 10pm. This is for the same reason that I set boundaries for work/school, although it looks different because it is personal rather than professional.
References
“Chapter 4 Convergence and the Limits of Citizen Journalism.” Social Media Communication, Sharing and Visibility, by Graham Meikle, Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2016, pp. 69–92.
Cottom, Tressie McMillan. “We Are Still Waiting? .” Twitter, Twitter, 17 Apr. 2020, twitter.com/tressiemcphd/status/1250981099846750209.
Brown, Brene. DARE TO LEAD GLOSSARY KEY LANGUAGE, SKILLS, TOOLS, AND PRACTICES. 2018, daretolead.brenebrown.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Glossary-of-Key-Language-Skills-and-Tools-from-DTL.pdf.
Miller, Jesse. “EDCI 338 A01 – HARRISON MOONEY.” Youtube, 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=elKNQpz0RrI&feature=youtu.be.
Hello Leah! I enjoyed reading your blog post because it is not only informative but it also helped me further my knowledge on this week’s lesson. Just like you, I also agree that a boundary shall be set between the professional and the personal. I connection to this, I just would like to mention that there are a lot of vloggers these days who will overshare about their personal life and would even document every second of it and post it online. To me, their life had become a literal open book. Although I understand that there are some who loves to follow people who are real or authentic, I just think that oversharing your personal identity can pose risks and privacy problems in the future.