Social Pro's Podcast

 The podcast I decided to study in relation to online communication was Social Pros; Keeping Social Real with Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler. Many points brought up in this podcast reflect what we have been learning in class, and were very interesting and informative. Their podcast as a whole, hosted by Anna Hrach and Daniel Lemin, focuses on all of the positive and innovative things coming out of social media, but the episode we are discussing today focuses more on the cons and the importance of using social media in a healthy way.

The guest being featured is Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler, an eye surgeon who blew up on the social media app Tik Tok for his medical-related content and stitches, racking up over 3 million followers and over 100 million likes. The start of this podcast discusses how Dr. Wachler gained such a massive following on social media, and how that has affected him. During covid like many others, Brian had found himself with a huge amount of downtime and quickly noticed the growing number of health-related videos circulating the app Tik Tok. This allowed him to reach a much wider audience than previously possible through a private practice or medical facility. This largely connects with our in-class learning and recent presentation on how social media affects interpersonal communication. Within the chapter "Communication and Technology" in our textbook I found the quote "Digital communication makes up most of the lives of youth today--whether it be mobile phones or social networking, the predominant current forms." (Green 210) This complements the previously mentioned piece of the podcast because it goes to show that social media really does act as an online community, full of insightful information and relationships just waiting to begin.

Although that is something very positive, the podcast goes on to discuss the possible harmful effects of social media. The first big topic covered is fake news and information being spread across social platforms. Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler states: "there is a huge number of health-related videos that are going viral, with hundreds and thousands and millions of views, but the information is totally not accurate; it is wrong or even dangerous" (Hrach & Lemin, 2022, 4:59) Dr. Wachler's content mainly consists of discrediting inaccurate health claims, which is extremely helpful to the online community. In class, we also discussed fake news when we focused on how social media was used throughout the pandemic. When Covid sent us all into shutdown, social media usage rates increased drastically. Because of this, people were also exposed to more fake news and personalized feeds with biased information. 

Dr. Wachler explains how many social platforms' algorithms don't fact-check information, can become addictive, and a string of other harmful behaviors that are possibly taken away from social media. I loved listening to this podcast and highly recommend you all to go check it out if you are wanting to learn more! Down below I am including a link to one of Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler's Tik Tok videos:

https://www.tiktok.com/@brianboxerwachlermd/video/7098435324136705322?lang=en

Social Media and History

How has social media played a role in the 2020 civil rights movement and protests?

 In late 2019, or early 2020, Covid 19 sent the world into a complete shutdown. For over a year we were all asked to stay inside, isolate and distance ourselves from others. With limited options for keeping ourselves busy during quarantine, it's no surprise social media usage skyrocketed. Apps like Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook allowed families and friends to keep in touch during unprecedented times, but that was not the only focus of these platforms. On May 25th, 2020, George Floyd was killed by a police officer, which sparked outrage and widespread protests against police brutality, and racially motivated crimes. Before social media, protests may get news coverage but nowhere near the screen time that is capable of today. Organizations like Black Lives Matter took over social media by storm and were able to reach people all over the world, something that was previously impossible.

How is social media changing the way people document history?

Before social media, there were newspapers, books, and television that would share news or historical moments/figures with their audience. However, these were nowhere 

near as powerful or accessible as social media, with limited space and time, not every story could be shared. Nowadays people carry their smartphones everywhere, to the grocery store, while hanging out with friends, or in bed. There is constant and instant access to endless bounds of information. Historical moments are shared in real-time, for example, the civil rights protests of 2020. It's not just something we would read about in a small back section of a newspaper, or years later in history books, but something viewers of social media could follow and even participate in all across the world. 

Give an example of how it’s been used in a positive, or negative way.

Although social media has many positives, there are also negatives that come along with it. Fake news and personalized feeds can be dangerous and misleading. When scrolling on social media apps, you are shown posts that are similar to what you choose to interact with, which can erase diversity and opinions that vary from your own. An example of this includes conspiracy theories like QAnon, it is easy to fall into extremes when you are only presented with one side of a debate, or told that opinions equal factual information.

If you are interested in reading more about QAnon or how social media promotes fake news I have included a couple different links below to check out.

Article on social media and fake news

Article on QAnon

Gymshark online communication

 To explore how companies use social media platforms and other forms of online communication as marketing I decided to look into the brand Gymshark. This is an activewear brand that I had never previously heard of outside social media that has become one of the most popular fitness brands in the country. The first thing I decided to do was take a look at their website, which was easy to navigate, full of color and photos, and quotes that are very on-brand for what they are selling. Underneath each clothing item, there was a detailed description of the item, the material, and measurements as well as the activity they are best for. Something gym shark does on their socials that I think is very smart is recruiting "Gymshark athletes." Popular fitness influencers are recruited to wear the brand and film with Gymshark for promotion. I think this form of online marketing is super smart because consumers are going to see all of their favorite fitness influencers repping the brand. 

When on their website, towards the top of the page is the search bar, your bag, and the drop-down menu that features all their clothing items. Smack in the middle you are met with two women wearing matching Gymshark sets, and holding dumbbells, if the same of the website didn't already give away what they are selling the viewer immediately gets a good view of the product. The further you scroll down it just gives more options to browse new colors and fits as well as Gymshark's goal as a company is to unlock its user's full potential and look good while doing it. I do think this is an effective setup because immediately when visiting the sight you are shown the product and different ways to access what they are selling. Most people come to the website to shop and not to read their company goals. 

Gymshark clearly identifies its identity online by posting athletes and gym rats working out in their brand. As I mentioned before recruiting popular fitness influencers as "Gymshark athletes" clearly targets an audience that is interested in fitness. Their website is full of athletes modeling their attire and they only sell clothes designed for fitness.

One thing I think Gymshark could do to improve its online communication is to target some of its advertisements for beginners. A lot of their marketing is using people at peak physique, which is motivating but also possibly intimidating for people that are just starting out at the gym. I also think they could advertise men more on their website. Men are used a lot in their social media marketing but I noticed a majority of the cover photos on the Gymshark website is women. 

Here is the website for reference:

https://us.shop.gymshark.com/?gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=CjwKCAiA0JKfBhBIEiwAPhZXD3jD-TNj3yI0fglyIvjJsp2AQw8J9IRK1inwpv7P4RHmoR1QvUA1wxoCk10QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds