The Misconceptions of Millennials

In recent years there has been many conversations about Millennials growing up being digital natives in society, and how that has effected the way Millennials are perceived by society. Many older generations, such as generation X, find Millennials to identify as having “entitlement and narcissism based on personality surveys” (1). In fact, people often refer to them as Generation Me due to being seen as egotistical, self centered people. I believe there are myths and truths to each generation, but society is made up of many people with different backgrounds and cultures, that it is had to be able to categorize a certain age group to fit under one category of personality traits or behaviors. This article will analyze the negative and positive perceptions of digital natives and how myths and truths can shape the way they are identified.

When older generations describe Millennials frequent words that are said are narcissistic, egotistical, self-centered, vain, etc., personally I find this perception to be a myth. Older generations did not grow up with having the internet be accessed right at their finger tips with a touch of a button like I grew up with, so I am able to see where they are coming from in this regard. But they also have to consider the thought that if they were to grow up during this time period they would most likely being doing the same thing. Human beings are social beings, it is in our DNA to want to be able to communicate with one another as communication has been a main principle for our survival. When the new era of social media was exposed to us, it was only natural for us to want to get connected. I believe there is a misconception on how Millennials are perceived because when older generations see them posting pictures of themselves they see it as being self-centered, but it really can be viewed as that person wanting to connect and relate to other people.

The way my generation uses social media has transformed the way we live our lives, as it has shaped the way we learn, work, and communicate. The dawn of the internet has effected the way we learn in a more positive way, as people are able to now access an abundance of information in just a millisecond. Whereas back before the internet acquiring knowledge was much more of a long process has encyclopedias and thesauruses were used more. The web has allowed students to be able to expand their horizons on how they retain knowledge as every student has a different learning style and the internet can create learning to be more interactive.

This is what a typical students desk looks like in my generation, whereas in older generations it may be occupied with paper, books, and pens. The technological innovations have allowed work spaces to be less clustered, while still providing all the information and tools needed.

In terms of working my generation has been able to increase business productivity and success. Before the internet businesses would have to communicate with one another through a piece of paper and pen or in person, this can decrease the productivity in a company as it can take a long time to be able to communicate back and forth with one another. The digital age has allowed business to flourish as response rates with one another are quick and businesses can also sell products online creating themselves to be more accessible to more consumers. Digital immigrants may become frustrated with this switch in business tactics as this is not what they grew up with. But they have to understand that as the years go by more and more technological advancements will take place, and it is only natural to be able to adapt to your own surroundings.

One aspect that I will agree with older generations on is that our form of communication with one another could be better. We have now entered an age where people will go to a restaurant with one another and no one will say a word because they are so consumed with their phones. The scholarly article That’s is so Not True: Adolescents Perspective of Adult Misconceptions of Teen Text Messaging states that “Millennial adolescence prefer to use texting to build face to face networks”, which I think should not be the case (3). I still think that being able to communicate in person vocally with one another is an important aspect of life. Technology has certainly changed they way we socialize and commutate with one another, but it is all about perspective whether or not it has changed for worse or for better.

One major reason why Millennial’s should not have a preconceived negative perception of them is because of the digital divide and how that effects the participation gap. Billions of people in the world have no access to the internet, so the percentage of people who actually are using the internet is a very small percentage. Henry Jenkins even said that we can not “assume that everyone had equal access to the resources, experiences, and knowledge required to meaningfully participate in the new media environment” (2). This proves that there can not be a stereotype that all Millennials act like self-centered, egotistical people who only care about themselves. There are negative problems associated with this because the people without internet access are the ones who tend to be in the most need of help and this can create a participate gap for them because they are not able to spread and share ideas with the public. Examples would include poor people living in Africa or India who have no internet access.

There are many negative perceptions of digital natives because older generations feel as if magazines, books, newspapers have gone down the drain and are not relevant any more. This article provides a perspective of a lady in Generation X and how she thinks Millennials and new technology have worsened society.

But with that being said there is so much that Millennial’s have sone to be able to create a positive perception of themselves. They have been able to help others find a voice, some examples may include the Black Lives Matter and the Me Too movement. This has expanded the participatory culture and allowed people to support a good cause and help others. The differences between generations should not matter as technology has just allowed Millennials to be able to have different opportunities than other generations.

Sources

(1). Geradine Brown PhD, R. N. “The millennials (generation Y): Segregation, integration and racism.” ABNF Journal 28, no. 1 (2017): 5.

(2). Henry Jenkins (2018). “Millenials, New Media and Social Change”. 

(3). Tulane, Sarah, J. Mitchell Vaterlaus, and Troy E. Beckert. “That’s SO not true”: adolescent perspectives of adult misconceptions of teen text messaging.” SL Blair, PN Claster, & SM Claster (Eds.) 19 (2015): 369e393.

But Memes are your Business…

By: Hannah Fitzpatrick

The meme I will be analyzing in this blog post is the popular meme “but that’s none of my business” with Kermit the frog. This meme has been used by people who want to express sarcasm toward another person or group in a negative manner where they are insulting something they have done or said. The meme can be “relatable and humorous for people outside of the judgement, and could be spread through the peer pressure to conform”(3). The meme’s success starts by drawing in a particular viewer who is able to relate to the subject matter and to be able to add their own adaptation to the meme, in other words the meme exemplifies fidelity. Because of the fidelity the meme acquires, it allows people to be able to modify the existing meme to become even more relatable to themselves, therefore creating the meme to become popular as even more people are able to relate to the subject matter. The longevity of the meme also represents its success as it has been relevant for six years. In recent years, this meme has gone viral over the internet as the successful online meme demonstrates humor, intertextuality, and juxtaposition. This post will analyze the six characteristics of a meme and the motivations of the meme.

The famous character, Kermit the frog, in The Muppets and Sesame Street has made a reappearance in recent years as he has become an internet sensation to the public. On June 17, 2014 the meme was first introduced as there is a picture displaying Kermit drinking from a cup and the caption is “when ratchets say they real hair but you see them tracks…but hey that’s none of my business”. The popularity of the meme really took action “on June 20th, the @thatsnoneofmybusinesstho instagram feed was created, which highlights pictures of Kermit the frog with “none of my business” captions” (2). The instagram page did so well that it was able to acquire 130,000 new followers. This shows how impactful memes are on people, as in just three days the instagram page was able to gain that many followers.

This is the instagram image of the first created image of the meme “but that’s none of my business”.

Probably one of the most important characteristics of a meme is fidelity, as getting people to be interested in a meme in the first place is critical for the success of it. I believe memes in general are successful because they all include an image, which can be intriguing to the eye. The famous phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover” does not apply to memes as the image is what enraptures the audience. In the scholarly article “Viral memes: That’s none of my business, “Davison believes that for a meme to be successful, it depends on manifestation, the ‘observable, external phenomena’, in short, the appearance of the meme” (1). The audience is hooked when they first see the image and then are able to make a correlation of that image to someone they can relate to. The age group that predominantly uses instagram are generation Z and millennials. This correlates to the success of the Kermit the frog meme as generation Z and millennial both watched Kermit the frog growing up. This then ties into the humor aspect of a meme as many find it funny that a childhood television cartoon character has been molded to become a relatable internet icon. Many people find sarcasm to be humorous, and the Kermit the frog meme is based off of sarcasm which is appealing to the audience. It is funny how the meme portrays kermit to be a sneaky individual that “knows” everything about everything. In the past few years people have been using the saying “spill the tea” when referring to when they want someone to tell them gossip that is happening. The fact that Kermit the frog is drinking tea in the picture is humorous to the audience because it is insinuating that he knows the tea, or in other words the gossip.

The hook can also tie into the juxtaposition of a meme where people are then able to recreate the meme to have another meaning behind it. Many times people do this to make it into something that is more relatable to their own lives, which then provides the opportunity for others to also relate to the meme as well. This allows the meme to be as successful as it is because it keeps the meme to be relevant because it is continuing to be posted and reposted. Some people may have different humors so juxtaposition allows for there to be multiple forms of the meme where someone will be able to find a variation of the meme that they think is funny or relatable. With that being said fecundity, in which the meme can be modified, can cause the meme to suffer as people can be offended by the subject matter.

For instance, this modification of the “thats none of my business” meme can be insulting and hurtful to others

Fecundity of a meme is not always great for society as it can be offensive and portray false information. Whenever I think of the negative effects of fecundity with a meme is when the meme says something about political happenings around the world as many young people rely on social media to be their news outlets for them. When this meme is spreading false ideas and information it can be detrimental to the knowledge people acquire from it. Intertextuality can play into this role as well in the meme community. Many popular events in the world become cross-referenced with memes as they people enjoy the simplicity of how effectively a meme can spread an idea.

Here is an example of intertextuality of what someone thought of republicans politically

The longevity of the meme represents the success of it as the longer it is relevant the more popular the meme. It is said that the “that’s none of my business” meme is one of the most successful memes as it is still relevant after being first presented in 2014, which is six years. This meme has created the sociological and cultural motivations in society as many people act upon this meme in their daily lives. The success of the meme is undoubtably recognized and does not seem to be proven irrelevant any time soon.

Sources

(1) Coleman, Abbie. “Viral memes: That’s none of my business.”

(2) Frogger , Queso. “But That’s None of My Business.” Know Your Meme, February 3, 2020. https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/but-thats-none-of-my-business.

(3) Parr, Eloise. “Task 1–A Popular Meme: Kermit the Frog.”

The Fight For Free Access to the Web

By: Hannah Fitzpatrick

The topic of Net Neutrality has been one of the most prevalent debates over the last decade, as powerful figures are threatening to take away our free access to the internet. For the audience reading this blog post, it is important that you have an understanding of what exactly Net Neutrality is. Net Neutrality is the concept that all people are able to acquire free access to the internet and all that it provides (3). Whether we believe it or not the internet is one of the most powerful weapons that humans have created to date. The internet has opened up a tunnel for people with no platforms to be able to speak their minds and express their opinions on what it taking place in the world. The strongest aspect of social media that has been integrated into all media platforms, is the ability to share what others have posted. This is so impactful on society because it allows someone to be able to have an even bigger voice as people are able to stand by and support what that individual is saying.

Ever since the 1700’s when the Declaration of Independence was made, it is expressed that Americans have the right to have freedom of speech. This law is so important as it allows people to be able to voice their options and stick up for what it right, without it the world we live in would be dominated by powerful political figures. Having freedom of speech is so important to have in order for humans to be able to effectively communicate with one another about each others needs. We need Net Neutrality in order to keep our freedom of speech. Net Neutrality allows people to connect with others and engage in our economy and democracy. It provides people with an infinite amount of information so that we are able to keep ourselves informed, and to be able to conduct research on the material we would like to be more informed on. Not being able to have Net Neutrality would prohibit that ability to be able to grow as a society.

In particular social media has allowed us to have huge amounts of freedom of speech as we can express our opinions for everyone to see and then others are able to like and repost that information.

Privacy rights certainly have to do with Net Neutrality as internet services as Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, etc. will be able to choose what internet media you will be exposed to. There will be no privacy as they are able to track your every move and be able to manipulate you to certain products and ads they can display. Without Net Neutrality we are almost treated as robots as these internet services can control and program us to think in certain ways. For example, when these internet services are able to access what information you are browsing on the internet they are then able to create ads that they think will suit your needs (2). Although this is a huge step for the economy as more people will be contributing to it through this tactic, is breaks from people being able to have any privacy from what they are doing on the internet. Each and every person has the right to be able to say what their personal limits are on their privacy needs, and no one should be able to break those boundaries. This is why it is so important to be able to step up and voice their opinion on having Net Neutrality.

There is hope for Net Neutrality to not be taken from us as change.org has allowed for millions of people to be able to express their feelings. Their mission to for as many people to sign a petition so that Ajit Pai’s plan to end Net Neutrality does not happen (1). Below is a tweet that I think encompasses the mission of what change.org is all about as they believe in empowering people to have a voice.

Without having Net Neutrality it would result in numerous amounts of consequences. As Net Neutrality provides everyone to be able to have a platform to speak their minds and acquire knowledge, this being taken away from us creates there to be a power struggle between those who have a platform and the everyday common person. Each and every person has a valuable thing to say about how we can further develop and innovate our world to become a better place, and without this all decisions will be up to those who have already have existing power. When someone is able to have such an infinite amount of power it creates an environment that is not good for society. The most powerful thing a leader can do is listen to the people around them and apply what they have said to make changes. Without Net Neutrality there would be the consequence of people in power not being able to listen to what people have to say. This also can effect the economy as business would be put in danger as ISP would slow down the rate of how fast the internet works for that businesses web page, it also would make the user pay to have internet access tho that specific page as well. Most importantly, the right to our own basic right have having privacy would be put in jeopardy. There are a multitude of consequences of not having Net Neutrality, which is why it is our responsibility to speak up upon this issue.

In fact a foundation that has been speaking upon this issue The Web We Want Project. I think that this foundation is fantastic as its mission to provide those with an open web is so important to me. In order for them to provide this to the public they seek to revise government policies. I think this is a smart tactic as the government has the most power and say, so they are the ones who will be able to have the final say in our access to Net Neutrality. I think those who want people to have a free web is the best way to have a better internet, because people are able to acquire knowledge and speech their opinions.

To conclude this blog post I will live it with a bit of inspiration that as a society we can come together and win this fight.

Sources

  1. Berghel, Hal. “Net Neutrality Reloaded.” Computer 50, no. 10 (2017): 68-72.

2. Cheng, Hsing Kenneth, Subhajyoti Bandyopadhyay, and Hong Guo. “The debate on net neutrality: A policy perspective.” Information systems research 22, no. 1 (2011): 60-82.

3. Krämer, Jan, Lukas Wiewiorra, and Christof Weinhardt. “Net neutrality: A progress report.” Telecommunications Policy 37, no. 9 (2013): 794-813.

Introduce Yourself (Example Post)

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

  • Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
  • Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

  • Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
  • What topics do you think you’ll write about?
  • Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
  • If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

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