Tasks:
Pick one context within which you communicate regularly and describe how that context invokes a particular kind of audience. This context can be a social media platform, e-mail communication, message boards, voice phone calls, etc. Remember that the ways the context creates constraints and affordances will contribute to which audience is invoked.
This next task requires some imagination: how might the context expand the invoked audience? Put another way, what changes could you make to the context to expand the invoked audience? How would those changes work?
I use snapchat more than I’d like to admit, it is quite the addictive platform. This particular platform is quite different from the others, the interface being easy scrolling, with little to no buttons or sub-categories. It allows users to post short videos, (or long ones, however short being the most desired) communicate with friends/family via photo, videos, chat, even video chat and voice calls, in a group chat, or one-on-one.
For those who like Snapchat, you know there are plenty of intriguing affordances that it offers, such as story highlights that allow ones‘ story to be viewed indefinitely, filters, geofilters to let your friends know where you are, options to control your audience, iphone and android compatibility, the option to add elements to your posts; stickers, music/audio, and links to other websites or platforms. Many times I’ve seen links to friends GoFundMe pages, petitions to sign for a good cause, or links to funny or interesting content across other platforms. These extras are often limited to users who actually can operate and properly navigate the apps’ internal posting editor, making the app less ideal for older generations. The short and fun viewing experience that goes along with keeping up-to-date with your friends activities creates an almost boundless opportunity sharing content and for your audience - which does, in my opinion, make it addicting for some.
Along with the addicting ”doomscrolling” nature of snapchat, there are a few more constraints that haunt this platform. On one hand, filters can be fun to make you look better, but in my opinion, they are misused and misleading. I think using filters all the time contributes to the ongoing expectation that you have to look perfect all the time, and when you see yourself without the filter you feel less attractive, which often leads to users avoiding sending selfies or videos to their friends, family, or most likely- someone they are interested in dating. This also creates opportunities for users to catfish others, especially if they have never met in real life. Another constraint on Snapchat users is the 24 hour veiwing limit, only allows stories and messages to be viewed for up to this time, which is great if it isnt something you are committed to keeping on another, more constant, social media. However, with that comes potentially bad behavior. Users may post whatever they want, with little to no consequences, when compared to other platforms policies and restrictions on content. This can be a great thing, if you want to share content only viewable by close friends, that is NSFW (not safe for work). From my experience, snapchat is where I see a lot of the content users post risque content, NSFW, because they know it will disappear in 24 hours, making this app not intended for proffessional/buisness use. Another issue is that geofilters, if not regulated by the user, can show people exactly where you are, leading to unsafe sharing of your location, that can be found by anyone who follows you (no pun intended).
I would, without-a-doubt, limit the amount of annoying ads and useless stories created by larger content platforms on the app. This, above all, is the most addicting…and you’re sitting there viewing absolutely unnecessary garbage content such as ”life hacks'' or ”DIY’s” created by “Troom Troom”, “BuzzFeed”, ”5-Minute Crafts”, among many, many others. I’d rather this platform focused on the users’ interactions instead of bombarding and interrupting us with excessive content. This would make the platform much less intimidating, more inviting, and less annoying. I think the ”discover” page I am referring to should be replaced with friends’ highlights or best moments of the year, making Snapchat more interconnected among friends and family. Maybe even adding songs that your friends have been listening to or places they frequent would be very interesting. I would also impliment an official resharing option, as there is no way to do so unless you screenshot another users content, which can be seen by the content creator, imposing problems if you didn’t want the user to know, on the other hand, if someone does screenshot your content, you know who did it. It probably wasnt your grandmother, unnamused by millenial media, so don’t worry.
Comments