Although Facebook just celebrated its twelfth birthday, social media is still a fairly new concept that is evolving and exploring new ideas. Most people in any developed country across the globe will most likely have at least one connection to social media, which makes it universally important that we use it to our advantage. There is now a web of billions of people that can communicate with each other instantly through social media and it is the responsibility of humankind that we don't let sites like Twitter, Snapchat and countless other interfaces waste our time. It is disappointing how much time is spent on mindless scrolling and while there should be some room for downtime during the day, our society currently wastes more than our fair share of time sending selfies and watching videos. The platform of social media is not being exploited like it should and we are able to accomplish great things with it more often than we do. I belong to three different social media sites and I have seen firsthand people taking action, in forms ranging from political matters to funding a medical bill or to spread word or a local emergency. In fact most people have seen the benefits of social media, but think of how rarely it is used to our advantage. I am a member of a page of students who met at a Student Diversity Leadership Conference last year and people use this page to look for support and advice on how to resolve discrimination issues and discuss current events, but I have not seen many comparable pages or sites. As someone who generally cares about the well-being of people, I see great potential in using social media to communicate, educate and facilitate action.

The article discusses how advocacy organizations believe that social media can be used for people to take action. The authors of the article surveyed 53 organizations about how they use social media to communicate with their followers and spread their message. The ultimate goal is for civic engagement to make a difference.

One of the points that the article brings up is that people tend to become interested in activism for a short amount of time with no real investment. These sedentary activists or 'slacktivists' as mentioned make up most of the population who even cares enough to follow an organization. 

All three gentlemen seem to be well informed on the topic, and two are professors in their respective Schools of Information. It is not clear what bias they may have on the topic but the fact that they are all white males may mean that there is a lack of diversity in their viewpoints.
The author claims that social media will allow society to dissolve demographics and be able to see everyone individually. She says that all of advertising and stereotypes are based on demographics and now people can break free and be recognized on a personal level. Social media is a platform to reveal yourself and express who you are without belonging to anything.

This article aims to show how people (more specifically women) can create their own identity and not be subject to preconceived notions that advertisers and society have about certain demographics. While it may be true that you are able to express yourself, it is challenging for major retailers and society to cater to every single person so her idea may be a fantasy. 

Johanna Blakley is an accomplished professor and has participated in TED Talks. She is knowledgeable about media's impact on the world, but may have a bit of a feminist bias which could cause some of her ideas to be somewhat unrealistic. Everyone belongs to multiple demographics which is perfectly acceptable, though she seems to deem them unfavorable.

This article proposes that the platform with which to use social media in a beneficial way is already present. There are sites that are set up where people can discuss medical treatments and law enforcement agencies can relay important information to citizens. However, very few people have taken advantage of the opportunities presented.

The author mentions that Barack Obama argues that it is our civic duty to participate in something that can help other people and rebuild the country. Social media can easily aid fellow citizens if it is used to our advantage. Organizations are in place that allow us to take action and work together as a society. 

Ben Shneiderman is a computer science professor at the University of Maryland. He is an expert in the field of Human-Computer Interaction. He seems well-informed on the topic and although he is a bit older than most people who would be using social media, he has an up to date point of view on how we can use social media in a beneficial way.

There are two basic ways that social media can be used: one is to nonchalantly browse through people's posts or send selfies which do not really have any significant impact on society, and the other is to communicate, educate, express opinions and ideas and ultimately help other people. It is still acceptable to use something like Facebook to post photos of your recent vacation, but it is important that everyone has a responsible contribution to the sites that they belong to as well. Researching this topic will expose ways to participate in something that actually builds communities and finds good uses of our time. Not everyone will agree on the same priorities and ways to contribute but luckily there are seven billion people in this world and everyone can participate in something that they are interested in or concerned about. The research may evolve from a compare and contrast scenario to more of a 'how can we move forward with what we already have' scenario. It is also important to ask how more people can find out about making a difference and become engaged in it.
