From what I have seen so far in studying Social Media, there are 3 sides to the digital communications triangle: facts, opinion and the truth. (Not to be confused by the inverted pyramid of storytelling).
Currently, I believe New Media is opinion driven for the most part, but factual and truthful content is emerging as Social Media is better understood and implemented. Here’s why.
Facts are facts – right? Date, time, location, quantity, direction and price…but facts do not tell the story, just like a jumble of dates, places and names do not make history.
Opinions do not need facts – in fact, they might just obscure the opinion in the first place, and as mostly everyone has a belly button – they also have an opinion, and currently that is over 7 billion opinions!
And then there is the truth – like the 3 sides to every story, there is my side, your side – and the truth!
So, Fact versus Opinion in New Media has a tough battle, and an even tougher one if it decides to inject truth using Social Media.
Since New Media is – well new, I believe most corporations fall afoul of a viral onslaught generated by a small proportion of social media users through a lack of knowledge about and with New Media in a Social context. (For example, in the Motrin crisis case study, I believe the ad campaign fell afoul of 1,000 Tweets out of the entire Twittersphere, and through a lack of knowledge and experience with Social Media delivered a knee jerk reaction apology and did not utilize the tools and listening techniques to leverage publicity given to them, their product and ‘offending’ ad).
Social Media is for socializing – and just like real world socializing, people become familiar and comfortable with each other, and eventually groups and bonds are formed where like in other social normalization activities, language takes on a form of its own, with the use of slang, acronyms, double meaning – and even new meaning for old words, and even new words.
Learning about this language for your target groups is crucial to focusing communication strategies for that audience – such as ad campaigns – and is more important than ever, because Social Media tools such as Twitter and Facebook have given the audience a means to air their opinion – which everyone has, which might be supported by facts, and may even have an element of truth associated with it. But for the most part, you get lots of opinion, with some facts – maybe, and a modicum of truth if you are really lucky!
Reacting to a mostly opinionated social backdrop channeled through New Media without suitable analysis of facts and truth as part of a focused response is almost like being bullied out of your position regardless of the facts and possibly the truth, and it would be a shame if opinion alone ruled the roost without supporting facts – and occasional truths!
What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Alternative view?
Originally posted 29Sep15 on Algonquin College Online Learning Blackboard Discussion Board.
Algonquin College Social Media Certificate Program 