Social media

Key people

• Andreas KaplanGerman economist, dean, university rector; higher education expert; edtech; social media; artificial intelligence
• Norman ThavaudFrench comedian and YouTuber
• danah boydSocial media scholar and youth researcher
• Cyprien IovFrench comedian and YouTuber (born 1989)

Timeline

• 1973A precursor of the electronic bulletin board system (BBS), known as Community Memory, appeared by 1973.
• 1980Message forums were the signature BBS phenomenon throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.
• 1990ARPANET evolved into the Internet in the 1990s.
• 2010Over 495,000 opinions were shared on X related to science between September 1, 2010, and August 31, 2011.
• 2014Thailand In the 2014 Thai coup d'état, the public was explicitly instructed not to 'share' or 'like' dissenting views on social media or face prison.

Read

• Social MediaRegina Luttrell · 2014Book
• Social media campaignsCarolyn Mae Kim · 2016Book
• Social media marketing for dummiesShiv Singh · 2012Book
• The Social Media IndustriesAlan B. Albarran · 2013Book

Listen

• Creator Club | Social Media Marketing & Content CreationKatie StecklyPodcast
• Stop the Scroll: A social Media podcast with Heidi Schmidt - Social Media and Content Marketing Advice for small business ownSocial Media Strategist, Content Marketer and Agency Owner Heidi SchmidtPodcast
• Social Media Manager ConfidentialShanté Gorman, Mentor for Social Media ManagersPodcast
• Social Media DecodedMichelle ThamesPodcast

Voices to follow

• Zeynep Tüfekçi@zeynep · XTurkish sociologist and writer (born 1970)
• danah boyd@zephoria · XSocial media scholar and youth researcher
• Evan Davis@EvanHD · XBritish economist, journalist and presenter
• Drew Afualo@DrewAfualo · XAmerican influencer, podcaster, and author

By the numbers

• 73.6Internet users (%) — global, 2025 (World Bank)
• 111.5Mobile subscriptions / 100 — global, 2025 (World Bank)

Debates

• Does social media improve or harm mental well-being?One view: Social media fosters connection and community, reducing feelings of isolation for many users. · Another: Excessive social media use is linked to increased anxiety, depression, and comparison culture.Open question
• Should social media platforms be held responsible for misinformation?One view: Platforms have a moral and ethical duty to moderate content and prevent the spread of harmful false information. · Another: Holding platforms responsible could lead to censorship and restrict freedom of speech, as users are ultimately accountable for what they share.Open question
• Is social media a net positive or negative for democratic processes?One view: Social media empowers citizens, facilitates political discourse, and enables rapid mobilization for social change. · Another: It often amplifies echo chambers, spreads propaganda, and can be manipulated to undermine elections and public trust.Open question

Glossary

• AlgorithmA set of rules or instructions used by platforms to determine what content users see.
• Echo ChamberAn environment where a person only encounters information or opinions that reinforce their own.
• Content ModerationThe process of monitoring and filtering user-generated content on platforms to enforce rules.
• ViralityThe rapid and widespread circulation of content, often through sharing on social media.
• InfluencerAn individual with a significant online following who can impact audience opinions or purchasing decisions.
• Filter BubbleA state of intellectual isolation that can result from personalized searches and algorithms.

Careers

Roles this can lead toward

Student research

Published policy papers by One Young India delegates — every delegate leaves published under their own name.

• Separating Real and AI Media – Difficulties and SolutionsK.V. Siva Surya
• The Public Persona Trap: US College Admissions and Social MediaGunika Chaudhary
• Understanding misinformation in India: The case for a meaningful regulatory approach for social media platformsGandharv Dhruv Madan
• The Evolution of Social Media Marketing: From Engagement to CommerceHimanshi Bhutoria

Threads 5

Where this connects to other fields — and why it's worth knowing.

• Optimization Mathematics

  Your social feed is a math problem that's been solved, and the thing it's trying to maximize is your attention. Every post it ranks is the math creeping one tiny step closer to whatever keeps your thumb scrolling.

• Sleep Health

  Endless scrolling at night steals the sleep your brain needs to build self-control. But without that self-control, you're even worse at resisting the scroll tomorrow. Feed and tired brain feed each other, night after night.

• Evolution Science

  Animals hunting for berries know when a bush is thinning out and it's time to move on. Your brain uses that same ancient 'when to quit' math while scrolling. Apps exploit it, making you swipe away from a fading feed exactly like leaving a picked-over bush.

• Nietzsche and Nihilism Philosophy

  Over a century ago, the philosopher Nietzsche warned about the 'last man': a person who just wants comfort, chases nothing bigger, and blinks contentedly. Now scroll your feed, engineered to keep you cozy, entertained, and never reaching for more. He basically predicted the algorithm.

• Complexity & Emergence Science

  A video goes viral not because it's loud, but because attention suddenly cascades through the network. It flips all at once, following the same tipping-point math as a spreading disease or iron snapping into a magnet.