Chapter 11: Social Media

Web 2.0

A term broadly referring to internet services that foster collaboration and information sharing, differentiating it from Web 1.0.

Social Media

Content that is created, shared, and commented on by a broader community of users.

Peer Production

When users collaboratively create content and provide services, often without being professionally assigned to the task.

Collaborative Consumption

Sharing access to products and services instead of owning them, with resources provided by a central service or a community (e.g., Uber).

Blogs

Online journals with chronological entries, immediate publication, and reader comments (e.g., Substack, WordPress).

Wikis

Collaborative websites anyone can edit directly in a browser with full revision history (e.g., Wikipedia).

Electronic Social Networks

Online platforms where users create profiles and connect (e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok).

Microblogging

Short messaging platforms with real-time updates (e.g., Twitter/X, Slack).

Messaging Services

Short-format communication tools supporting text, video, and ephemeral messaging (e.g., Snapchat, Instagram).

Question and Answer Sites

Platforms for public, user-generated knowledge sharing (e.g., Quora).

Long Tail

Refers to a large selection of niche content/products, like in blogs.

Owned Media

Communication channels directly controlled by a firm (e.g., company blogs, apps, websites).

Paid Media

Promotional efforts paid for by a firm (e.g., ads, sponsorships).

Earned Media

Unpaid promotion via customer reviews, word of mouth, or social media sharing.

Inbound Marketing

Drawing consumers in with valuable online content rather than using traditional outbound marketing.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Improving a website's organic search rankings.

Content Adjacency Problem

When advertisers avoid platforms due to fear their ads may appear next to objectionable content.

Corpus

The body of data and knowledge used to train AI, often derived from wikis.

What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG)

A visual editing interface used in wikis and design tools.

Rollback

The ability to revert a wiki to a previous version.

Wikimasters

Individuals employed to monitor and review community-created content.

Griefers (Trolls)

Users who vandalize or disrupt online platforms.

Neutral Point of View (NPOV)

An unbiased, opinion-free editorial standard used in wikis.

Social Network

Online communities that allow users to create profiles and connect (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn).

Viral

Describes information or content that spreads quickly across a network.

Influencer

A person capable of affecting the opinions or behaviors of an audience.

Hashtag

A symbol (#) used to organize content into searchable topics.

Doxxing

Sharing private personal information about someone online without consent.

Twitter/X

A microblogging and real-time news platform that has seen controversy over moderation, free speech, and verification policies.

ByteDance

The Chinese company that owns TikTok, which acquired Musical.ly in 2017.

First-Party Data

Data collected from direct user interactions with a service.

Third-Party Cookies

Tracking technologies used by external advertisers or analytics services.

TikTok Shop

An in-app marketplace for U.S.-registered businesses competing with Amazon, Temu, and Shein.

TikTok Algorithm

Content delivery is largely based on AI analysis of user behavior like time spent and retention.

TikTok Bans

Scrutinized in some countries over data privacy and security, notably under Donald Trump's administration.

Wisdom of Crowds

The idea that a group of individuals can collectively be more insightful than a small group of experts.

Prediction Market

A system for pooling opinions from a diverse crowd to forecast an outcome.

Crowdsourcing

Outsourcing tasks to a large, undefined group of people via open call (e.g., Waze).

Open Innovation

The idea that useful insights and solutions often come from outside an organization.

SMART Team

A group in a company responsible for social media policies, training, and development.

Sock Puppet

A fake online identity created to influence opinions or promote a product.

Astroturfing

Faking grassroots support by engineering positive reviews or comments.

Online Reputation Management

The process of monitoring and responding to online mentions of a person, product, or company.

Embassy (Social Media)

A firm's official and established online presence for interacting with customers (e.g., social media profiles, email newsletters).