What are the benefits of a diverse and inclusive PLN in social media sharing that understands where you are coming from with messaging that impacts the community?
Having a diverse PLN that understands you, can notably aid in expanding/conveying your message about something impacting a community. There’s an abundance of benefits as support can go a long way. For example, having a reliable PLN that believes in your credibility can trigger more interest in your message. This not only can build a following but this slight increase in traffic can allow for people to begin conveying your message to their PLNs. This can cause a domino effect and allow for your message to expand and reach such a varied amount of people that you may not have had the ability to reach. We have noticed from the past couple of weeks just how impactful a diverse and inclusive PLN is, and this is another great example of the positive effects it can have.
Consider the audiences and how we adapt our messaging accordingly.
Knowing our audience will determine a lot about how we configure our messages. This can include things like the tone, relating to emotions/logic/credibility, the platform (Jansen, et al., 2011), what’s important, etc. For example, if I was wanting to speak about climate issues to the students of Uvic I would most likely do it online (as us university students can usually be found online!) and I would make the message be factual but also emotional to really grasp the issue! However, if I was going to convey this message to another demographic, I might use a credible endorsement to better shape my credibility in order to get them to listen and believe me! Knowing your audience is so important in order to not only get success from your messages but to build a lasting impression and thus grow your PLN.
Research our guest and see how they leveraged their network into a campaign.
As I began to look into our guest Markiel Simpson, I came across an article that was super eye-opening. I found an article that spoke about how a man named Svend Robinson posted some tweets which were littered with offensive and distasteful side-comments towards Simpson to support Jim Hanson, who was also a candidate for NDP nomination in federal riding for Burnaby North-Seymour (Smith, 2021). The reason this specific article resonated with me and caught my interest was those who supported Simpson came to his side immediately and began to dismantle Robinson’s tweets. They analyzed that Robinson was making claims that were simply outdated and spoke up against this, just as Simpson does! I think this showcased the importance and the impact of a strong PLN and this revealed how even without action, a PLN can work together to leverage someone! I know this isn’t how Simpson on his own leveraged his network into a campaign, but it does show how his network leveraged his campaign simply because they believe in and support Simpson! (Harrison Johnson makes such strong points, please give this a read. I believe more of us need to understand and really reflect on the messages Robinson is saying. Words and ideas like that, can only continue to hold us back, and by actually calling these individuals out and noting the negative impacts of these words can we begin to dismantle them)
Jansen, S. C., Pooley, J., & Taub-Pervizpour, L., 1967. (2011). Media and social justice (1st ed.). Palgrave Macmillan.
Miller, J. (2021, June 1). EDCI – 338 Markiel Simpson. YouTube. Retrieved October 29, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsoDHGaXNNs.
Smith, C. (2021, March 25). Supporters of Markiel Simpson and Jim Hanson Duke it out over Twitter. The Georgia Straight. Retrieved October 29, 2021, from https://www.straight.com/news/supporters-of-markiel-simpson-and-jim-hanson-duke-it-out-over-twitter.
Hey Ali,
I agree with you that finding out the preference of our targeted readers will help make learning more engaging, fun and enjoyable. I personally have a short attention span so short chunks of prominent information work best for me. Additionally, if you understand how your audience takes in information, you are able to cater and adapt accordingly.
I also like how you said that it is not just the tone, relating to emotions, logic, and credibility that we need to be aware of, but also the platform we are using! I have never thought of that before. I think that if you post something on TikTok and Facebook you are going to reach very different audiences and opinions. Good point 🙂
Hi Ali,
I like your discussion of how media platform is not neutral, which I agree, different media platforms has its own “personality”, and people would behave differently when they use different apps. For example, Linkedin–serious, and Tiktok–fun.
my comment: I agree with the idea of “a domino effect” when you are describing the effect of an inclusive PLN. It reminds me of the guest of this week Mo Amir and how he has established his pln. He mentioned that once his podcast with the guests succeeded, he would be reached by people related to the guests such as their colleagues or friends so that he could harvest a larger and larger PLN.