Social Media and the Good Life: Do They Connect?
| Date | 05 June 2017 |
| Published date | 05 June 2017 |
| Pages | 616-617 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/EL-01-2017-0019 |
| Author | Kay Samuels |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information & communications technology,Internet |
This book is well worth buying as a team resource for librarians who work with
researchers or for those planning to expand into this area. It is full of interesting insights
into the practices of other universities and provides good tips.
Jane Manseld
Department of Academic Support Services, University of York, York, UK
Social Media and the Good Life: Do They Connect?
Edited by Mark Y. Herring
McFarland
Jefferson, NJ
2015
216 pp.
US$29.95 soft cover
ISBN 978-0-7864-7936-8
Review DOI 10.1108/EL-01-2017-0019
The purpose of this book is to examine the value of social media and discuss the legal
and ethical pitfalls of usage. The book is written for a wide audience including
government ofcials, educators and parents. Different social media platforms promote
different usage, and Herring looks at the benets and risks associated with that use.
Chapter 2 discusses how social media was designed to facilitate connections between
people. Other chapters track the history of social networking and how the government
uses social media. This includes how politicians such as Obama and Trump use social
media in elections and Edward Snowden.
In the education context the discussion includes how there is no gatekeeper. The
question asked is whether social media helps or hinders academic work, especially
with privacy issues around online submissions and the risk of cyber snooping. It
also talks about the problem of online predators and cyberbullying. Herring says
that the next step is for legislation to enact cyberbullying laws to curtail its
incidence. Benets of social media in the education context include teaching
students to read, spell and collaborate.
In Chapter 5, the discussion encompasses uses of social media by disabled people and
talks about the benet of bringing people together, exposing abuses and removing
barriers to accessibility. Some of these solutions include technical advances such as
voice recognition and text to speech programs. However, this cannot improve the
majority of user-generated content and leads to the problem of enforcing accessibility
laws.
The next chapter discusses the benets of social media in the business community,
especially through marketing, although statistics have not shown increased sales.
Herring also discusses the rise of social media abuses at work. He predicts that
businesses will need to create stronger social networking policies.
Privacy is a big issue stopping people using social media as the risk factors are high.
Chapter 8 talks about the growing problem of identity theft so we need to protect
EL
35,3
616
To continue reading
Request your trial