Digital Discourse Database

Number of Posts: 79
Posts 71 - 79

One Small Step for NASA, One Giant Leap for GIFs

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Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 14.12.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | GIFs, social media
Summary | NASA is now providing GIFs of their video footage on giphy.com in order to meet the contemporary public on their channels: social media.GIFs are a poetically fitting medium to depict the movement of celestial objects - they are infinitely repetitive. GIFs have become central to online communication as a means to express strong emotions or stances. Some linguists say that GIFs are a more extreme version of emojis which are thought to replace body language in the digital realm.
Image Description | GIFs of a rocket taking off, an explosion in space, and some NASA employees cheering.
Image Tags | gifs

13 Super-Modern Signs Your Relationship Is Getting Serious

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Newspaper | Huffington Post
Date | 30.1.2017
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | Facebook, Instagram, sexting, social media
Summary | The digital age has brought forth new little milestones for relationships: what used to be putting your girlfriend on speed dial may now be waiting for them to watch a new episode of your favorite TV show together. Other signs that your relationship is increasingly serious are when you text each other during day time not to make plans but to check in or share something, when your significant other's family want to befriend you on social media, when you appear in each other's Instagrams, when you make your relationship official on Facebook, or when you send each other nude selfies.
Image Description | A CNP Montrose image of intricately manicured hands using a Blackberry.
Image Tags | female(s), hand(s), smartphone, text

Letter of Recommendation: Instagram Explore

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Newspaper | New York Magazine
Date | 5.1.2017
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | Instagram, social media
Summary | As consumers of the internet, we are used to being subjected to algorithms calculating what we might be interested in and feeding it back to us. The algorithm on the Instagram Explore page is however is very difficult to decipher because it suggests things that seem unlikely but somehow it still works: users are often surprised by how they like something that they never would have expected. The Instagram world nurtures a society of narcissists and excentrics who are apt at expressing themselves. For the first time, one persons guilty pleasure or secret hobby can be put online and receive a global applause in form of emojis and messages in various languages.
Image Description | Collage of artsy trompe l'oeil eye makeup by Instagrammer Gulianna Maria Bosco.
Image Tags | female(s)

New York Public Hospitals Use Emojis to Reach Young People About Sex

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Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 17.7.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | emojis, social media, youth
Summary | New York City hospitals are now trying to get young people's attention on social media to inform them about free, confidential sexual health services. The advertisement campaign includes emojis, for instance the question "Need to talk to someone about 'it'?" accompanied by an eggplant emoji or bird and bee emojis. They talked to youths in focus groups and determined that this might be the best way to reach them. The campaign is particularly important because many youth report that they do not approach their parents with questions concerning sexual health. Critics of the campaign however say that the advertisements might be too ambiguous and difficult to understand for people who are only just learning English.
Image Description | Two advertisements of the question "Need to talk to someone about 'it'?" accompanied by an eggplant emoji and bird and bee emojis.
Image Tags | emojis

7 Workplace Chat Apps to Keep Your Team in Sync

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Newspaper | Huffington Post
Date | 26.1.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | Facebook, social media
Summary | There are various new apps that facilitate professional communication between colleagues in the same office building but also in international companies with offices all over the world. Facebook has launched a new version of its social media platform called 'Facebook for Work' and it is supposed to combat employees using Facebook for procrastination/personal purposes at work and rather using the many communication options Facebook offers for efficient communication within the work team. Google Apps are also very convenient because they are available on all devices and have a huge array of functions. Other apps are Slack, Voxer, Instantbird, Yammer, and Pie.
Image Description | Photograph of a work conference showing gender and race diversity as well as smiling employees.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, female(s), male(s)

3 Ways To Properly Wish ‘Happy Birthday’

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Newspaper | Huffington Post
Date | 15.9.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | politeness, social media
Summary | Wishing someone a happy birthday over social media is very pale in comparison to for instance staying up till midnight and surprising someone with a call or visit. Also a better option than wishing someone a happy birthday via social media is to give them a gift - it does not need to be expensive, bought, or material. All it takes is a thought. That said, happy birthday wishes via social media can be nice, especially if some thought was put into them. Posting a personalized e-card or an old photo of the birthday boy or girl (where they look good) is a nice gesture for instance. What should be avoided is not even taking the time to spell our 'happy birthday, XYZ' and writing something like 'HBD'.
Image Description | An image of a bouquet of roses with a 'Happy birthday' sign in them.

Traveling In A World Of Social Media: Dos And Don’ts

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Newspaper | Huffington Post
Date | 20.10.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | smartphone, social media
Summary | Today, smartphones and social media are everywhere, even when you go abroad. It can be tempting to spend too much time using the smartphone - and miss valuable travel experiences such as being spontaneous and seeing the unexpected. Still, social media can be a great tool to enhance your travel experience by connecting with locals on their regional social media platforms (for longer stays abroad) or to get tips from other travellers who have been there. It is also very important to document your travels for yourself, to be able to remember all the experiences made while travelling.
Image Description | Author's travel images of Hong Kong's skyline and Chinese mountains.

In messaging apps for teens, talk of dangers and dollars

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Newspaper | Washington Post
Date | 14.2.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | social media, threat, youth
Summary | Teenagers are moving away from public social media and towards private communication channels where they are unsupervised by their parents. Parents should however look into technologies to monitor their children's online activity - even on private media such as WhatsApp or Kik. Because Kik has reported a 40% increase in teenage users, businesses are eager to advertise on this platform. Online advertising is however moving away from banner ads to chatbots which approach the prospective customers in an informal conversational manner. For now, chatbots are only for advertising but they are planned to enable users to actually shop within a messaging app.
Image Description | Video about teenage deaths/pedophile crimes faciliated on Kik and a screenshot of a chat with the Kik chatbot.
Image Tags | text

Can Texting Fill an Empty Nest?

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Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 17.9.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | Facebook, social media, texting, youth
Summary | Many parents find themselves very lonely when their children leave the nest for college. New media have enabled parents to stay in touch with their children conveniently and cost-efficiently. Many parents report to text their children at college multiple times a day. Other parents use social media to keep an eye on the activities of their sons and daughters. The youths are split on which way of communicating with their parents they prefer – some would never want their parents to follow them on social media while others appreciate the low maintenance in just keeping parents updated like that.
Image Description | Illustration of a woman sitting in a youth’s rather empty bedroom.
Image Tags | female(s)

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