Week 1 - Meet Social Media

I loved the line in our text book: social media is about enabling conversation (page 4). Web 2.0 technologies allow and support previously passive internet users to become active, real-time contributors to and participants of the web content. And this seemingly, deceptively simple change is altering the way we engage and interact with the world. This article about Canadian CIOs' testing of social networking begins with one such example. Another example is experiencing career simulations on the Ontario Public Service's Second Life presence. And if the virtual world is not the thing for some, there's always couchsurfing which claims to have enabled over 1.7 million successful surf or host experiences. If something is changing our world so significantly, it is at least worth understanding, if not utilizing to its maximum potential. That's one key reason in my opinion why social media is important.

Different social media skills are like tools in a craftsperson's box... it is critical to intimately understand the best and specific use(s) of each tool in order for the craftsperson to excel in their work. I'd like to learn about the various social media skills and their optimal uses, both current and emerging.

In the field of public policy, the relationship between the government and the governed (individuals, organizations, etc.) is being redefined and refined, and social media can play an integral role in facilitating this process. The increasing use of social media by politicians (e.g. David Miller on Twitter) as well as governments (e.g. the various uses listed on this US government site) is a great indicator of this critical potential of social media. I am deeply interested in this potential.