Essay Example: Communication in the Social Media

The social media has proven to be one of the fast developing and diverse means of communication. Through the social media platforms such as Whatsapp, Facebook, tweeter or Instagram, it is possible to alter the profile to pass information about a feeling or event. Just like most social media users, I believe that the choice of the right image and periodic changes of the profile performs a vital role in branding and establishing an identity that responds to my feelings, circumstances, and beliefs. One fundamental aspect of my social media profile that I afford much attention is the picture. My understanding is that the social media image communicates various information about me on the things that I may not be able to talk whatsoever. Therefore, I occasionally change the picture to look jovial, smart, decently dressed or serious.

Throughout my use of the social media, my updates are often not based on any empirical study but rather the impression and feelings I encounter in other media platforms as well as those of my friends. In the profile, I often attempt to contextualize my personal opinions about the things that my friends experience as well as the information provided by other media. Ideally, I conceive that the profile cover images, as well as the accompanying writings, display some sense of social, religious, personal or political affiliation.

One of my astounding Facebook profiles has the image of a devastated street urchin being clobbered and harassed by the inner city police. The urchin is wearing tattered clothes and struggles to escape the wrath of the furious police. Traditionally, my friends would love to see my profile replete with excellent images of me traveling, enjoying a meal in a posh food outlet or having my leisure time along the sandy beaches. However, my instincts towards the afflicted in the society forced me to expose some of the challenges that the unfortunate members of any community undergo. With the understanding that the social media has multiple users with different social inclinations and perceptions, I decided to share the image from a website that focuses on police brutality and homelessness in the United States of America, especially in the overpopulated inner cities.

In the image, writings are castigating the police mistreatment of the homeless in Los Angeles and other populous states of the United States. From the onset, the profile image and the imprinted writings arouse the emotions of any well-structured society towards defending the underprivileged. Whereas people often try to depict the attractive aspects of life on their profiles, there is usually an underlying struggle that is concealed. As an idealist, I know what I stand for, but in the pursuit of my stances, I typically try to appeal to my friends who may not share my opinions. Therefore, I tend to deflect the ideas and views by presenting them as having come from another primary source other than myself. The undertone of the profile image is the need for proper governance, a leadership that exercises its powers with a lot of restraint and a tremendous societal sensitivity to the plight of the poor. The profile employs the fundamental principle of deflecting of information by disguising its source while maintaining the seriousness of its content.

Over time, I have changed my profile pictures depending on my personal experiences. For instance, as a teenager, I would update my profile with friends playing or running errands. Nonetheless, growing up exposed me to some of the realities of life such as the affiliations that some people undergo hence resolved to use the social media as a platform to communicate the situations of others other than myself. For instance, in the profile picture depicting a suffering street urchin, my focus was on four fundamental aspects of the contemporary society. These issues include care for the needy, exercise of authority by government agencies, the effects of homelessness and factors associated with juvenile delinquency. Ideally, as much as the profile is mine, it fundamentally portrays the society for what it thus serves the role of triggering a sense of social responsibility not only to the people with power but also the community that reserves the obligation of correcting mistakes of any administration.

Whereas I had the alternative of articulating my thoughts and opinions in actual words while maintaining my photo as a profile image, I had the fascination with the incredibility of pictures in communicating a variety of information to different social media users. My profile may have a particular aspect of ambiguity. For instance, my friends who are pro-children rights are highly likely to share my thoughts about the frustration of the urchin; liberals may argue that the police are undertaking their professional role of making the streets of inner cities safe and secure by riding them off of potential criminal elements. One interesting aspect of communication in the social media captured in my profile is that it points my many followers and friends on Facebook that I have a personal feeling and inclination that relate to the message contained in the cover profile image.