Social Media Business, University of Washington, social media platforms, digital persona, economic sector, advertising, traditional commercial media, social media
Social media platforms have emerged as the center of the universe for our digital persona, changing how people communicate with each other and profoundly impacting both the economic sector and the public arena. At the core of their influence lies an innovative business model that exploits advertising as a main source of income. This has ushered in a new monetization paradigm for online interactions. This article takes a deep dive into the mechanisms that underlie revenue generation for media platforms such as social media and contrasts them with those of traditional commercial media. Moreover, it investigates the wider implications of these corporate models on public discourse, challenging whether the profit-making motive is the main factor that brings about the quality and credibility of information that defines social conversations. Through the research of these observations, the essay highlights how social media affects the structure of the economy and society (Bimber & Gil de Zúñiga, 2020).
[...] How Do Social Media Business Models Affect the Public Sphere? Social Media Business University of Washington Social media platforms have emerged as the centre of the universe for our digital persona, changing how people communicate with each other and profoundly impacting both the economic sector and the public arena. At the core of their influence lies an innovative business model that exploits advertising as a main source of income. This has ushered in a new monetization paradigm for online interactions. [...]
[...] The monetization scheme of social media platforms has a deep influence on the public sphere, which has severe consequences. Through their tendency to focus on the engagement of the users, they are inevitably driven to put forward sensational or emotionally charged content, which in turn leads to polarization and the dissemination of false information. The model in question produces echo chambers that contain content that induces existing biases; as a result, the public discourse is not based on reason, and it diminishes the quality of the decisions made in democratic societies. [...]
[...] In conclusion, the media industry and public sphere have uncontrollably been reshaped by social media platforms. The platforms give never-seen-before access to the voters and promote marketing and advertising, but at the same time, their business models introduce many threats to public discourse and democratic process. This needs a deep understanding of how the social media economics works and regulations that can regulate growth of technologies with social values. In the years to come, the discussion around the economic gains and social changes that this environment may trigger will become an even more heated topic among stakeholders, as they continuously vary and set new standards on the role of digital platforms in our now data-driven society (Van Dijck, 2020). [...]
[...] The unedited public sphere. New media & society, 22(4), 700-715. Habermas, J. (2022). Reflections and hypotheses on a further structural transformation of the political public sphere. Theory, Culture & Society, 39(4), 145-171. Honey-Rosés, J., Anguelovski, I., Chireh, V. K., Daher, C., Konijnendijk van den Bosch, C., Litt, J. S & Nieuwenhuijsen, M. J. (2021). The impact of COVID-19 on public space: an early review of the emerging questions-design, perceptions and inequities. Cities & health, 5(sup1), S263-S279. [...]
[...] Schlesinger, P. (2020). After the post-public sphere. Media, culture & society, 42(7-8), 1545-1563. Van Dijck , J. (2020). Governing digital societies: Private platforms, public values. Computer law & security review, 36, 105377. [...]
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