social media and theories

Social Media is any form of media that people use to communicate ideas to one another with the use of technology that breaks down the barriers of distance and inconvenience, social media was popularized by the dawning of the age of social networking sites. Lisa Gitelman helps us to define social media as any technology that enables communication, as mentioned above, secondly media is a set of social practices that have become synonymous with that technology. The three concepts of media convergence, participatory culture and collective intelligence are all primary parts of Social Media that have shaped the way that people communicate with one another. The next step to deciding the path for social media may depend on the Black Box theory in which we must determine which black box, be it the T.V., laptop, Smartphone or Xbox that will emerge as the champion of the boxes. Once the Black Box is determined we are left to struggle with the role of social media in our lives. Will it all but replace human interaction or be the binding glue between strangers, neighbors,friends and family, husbands and wives?