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Social media is a technological phenomenon that is very popular in todays culture. A statistic provided by Oberlo (2022) shows that as of 2022, a projected 3.96 billion users use social media. The modern day spectacle often involves forming relationships or networking, likely with the intent to be social or professional.

Social media sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn are prime examples of what can also be referred to as networks (Buckland, 2022, Week 6a Slide 6). The book, Connected: The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives, by Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler (2009), defines the concept of networking as an organized set of people consisting of two elements: humans and the connections between them. Networking technology is among the most fundamental forms of human social organization, and that makes it important to human communication and culture (Buckland, 2022, Week 6a Slide 7).

As a form of networking, social media platforms can offer these two fundamental features.

When we refer to content flowing across the ties, we are referring to the content that circulates through the network, such as a viral post or a message (Buckland, 2022, Week 6a Slide 26).

Much like video games in our previous blog post, for some people, it may be easy to get too attached to the content of networks or social media, leading to addiction. Modern day social media such as TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat have been found to be highly addictive to some (Sternlicht & Sternlicht, n.d.), and once again, addiction to the matter has to do with disrupting the natural release of dopamine.

When you use social media, positive engagement in the form of likes or follows releases those feel-good chemicals, and typically the more you get, the more you will want to receive (Sternlicht & Sternlicht, n.d.). Excessive reliance not only disrupts the natural release of dopamine, but also can bring in a false sense of social engagement, leaving you feeling alone (Sternlicht & Sternlicht, n.d.). Additionally, this can bring in other forms of addiction to social media, which includes but is not limited to the following:

Evidence shows that excessive social media and networking use can result in an addiction that disrupts ones habits and mental state, similar to what was detailed in two blog posts prior to this one. You can find the links to them listed below.

This blog post concludes our series on technology addiction, and evidence from research shows that technology plays a significant role in mental addiction when used in excessive amounts. Thank you for reading.

Links to the previous blog posts in our series:

Blog References:

Buckland, A. (2022). Week 6a PPT Networks and Hierarchy. Royal Roads University COMM 329 Course Content.

Christakis, N., and Fowler, J. (2009). Connected: The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Hilliard, J., & Parisi, T. (2021). Social Media Addiction. Addiction Center. https://www.addictioncenter.com/drugs/social-media-addiction/.

(2022). How Many People Use Social Media in 2022? [Updated Jan 2022]. Oberlo.ca. https://www.oberlo.ca/statistics/how-many-people-use-social-media#:~:text=The%20latest%20figures%20show%20that,jump%20in%20just%20six%20years.

Sternlicht, L., & Sternlicht, A. (n.d.). The 6 Most Common Types of Technology Addiction. Familyaddictionspecialist.com. https://www.familyaddictionspecialist.com/blog/the-6-most-common-types-of-technology-addiction.

Image provided by pixabay.com.

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Social Media & Networking Addiction, Theory, and Wrap (3/3) - Medium

Like any NSYNC fan, Andrew Garfield was awestruck when working with co-starJustin TimberlakeonThe Social Network. The 2010 Academy Award-winning film covers the true story of how Mark Zuckerberg created the widely popular social networking site Facebook.

The experience of working together on the biographical drama set left a lasting impression on Garfield. TheTick, TickBoom!star spoke about working with Timberlake onThe Social Networkand how he looked up to the pop star as a child.

While doing theWired Autocomplete Interview,Garfield responded to popular web queries about him. One referred to his Justin Timberlake impression, which he did onSaturday Night Live in 2014. Garfield started explaining theSNLimpression search by commenting that he wasnt sure if Timberlake enjoyed his impression.

However, he noted how he looked up to him during music-focused days. I wish I could be Justin when I was a kid. Garfield admired the award-winning artists dancing and singing skills. He also referenced one of Timberlakes hit songs. He brought sexy back, Garfield exclaimed. That is no mean feat for one person to do.

The Amazing Spider-Manstars admiration of the former boy band frontman may have contributed to his spot-on impression during his appearance onSNL. Garfield played Justin Timberlake during one of the showsCelebrity Family Feudsketches.

Faux JT tries to take over the show and make it all about him throughout the sketch. He poses with the ladies, interrupts the opposing team, and shows off his dance moves. If there was a camera on Garfield, he was soaking up the spotlight as his childhood idol. By the end of theSNLsketch, Just Justin is ready to turn the Family Feud stage into his own personal music video by breaking out into a solo performance.

While Garfield and Timberlake may not look alike,Spider-Man: No Way Homeactor gave a surprisingly well and hilarious impression of the Grammy-winning musician. Given its ranking as a top search about the widely recognized actor, Garfield fans agree that he accurately mimics Timberlakes mannerisms and key moves.

Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake co-starred in the 2010 filmThe Social Network. Garfield received acclaimed success playing Eduardo Saverin in the movie, while Timberlake portrayed Sean Parker. Garfield considered it a dream come true to work with his childhood idol. But he was even further impressed by how Timberlake was such a supportive dude during filming.

In the Wired video, he recalled the laptop-smashing scene from the movie and how Timberlake came up to him after the shooting of that scene and gave him a compliment he deemed so lovely. Those are the special moments I hope I never take for granted, Garfield finished.

WhileThe Social Networkallowed Garfield and Timberlake to bond, they put their friendship aside when shooting one scene together. Timberlake playing Sean, the creator of Napster, did not get along with Garfields character Eduardo, Mark Zuckerbergs close college friend. Therefore, the two seemed less like buddies during filming the hit movie to ensure they accurately depicted the animosity between their characters on-screen.

RELATED:The Social Network: Andrew Garfields Lawyer up Scene Took 40 Takes to Film

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'The Social Network': Andrew Garfield Looked up to His Co-Star Justin Timberlake -- 'He Brought Sexy Back!' - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Sydney: Australia announced more sanctions against Russia over the invasion of Ukraine Sunday, immediately banning all exports of alumina and bauxite while pledging more weapons and humanitarian assistance.

The export ban aims to impact aluminium production in Russia, which relies on Australia for 20 percent of its alumina.

It comes just days after Canberra sanctioned oligarch Oleg Deripaska, who owns a stake in Queensland Alumina Limited -- a joint venture between Russian aluminium company Rusal and mining giant Rio Tinto, which has vowed to sever all business ties with Russia.

A Rio Tinto spokesperson said the company "notes the government's announcement today regarding export sanctions" and it was still in the process of "terminating all commercial relationships it has with any Russian business.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Sunday his government was working with partners to "put the maximum cost, the maximum pressure on the Putin regime to withdraw from Ukraine.

Morrison said Australia had levelled 476 sanctions against Russian individuals and institutions since the invasion began.

He announced Australia would donate 70,000 tonnes of thermal coal to Ukraine, following a request from the besieged nation.

"We understand that it can power up to one million homes," he said.

In addition, Australia will increase its humanitarian assistance with an additional Aus$30 million (US$22.3 million) and will donate a further Aus$21 million in defensive military assistance to Ukraine, including ammunition and body armour.

In recent weeks, the government has approved nearly 5,000 visas from Ukrainians displaced by the conflict, Morrison added.

He announced that Ukrainian refugees would be eligible for a new three-year humanitarian visa, allowing them to work, study and access the country's health system.

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Startup of the Week: Saudi networking platform Playbook nurtures female ambitions - Arab News

In just under a month, the internet in Russia has become nearly unrecognizable after hundreds of news outlets and social media platforms have vanished from the web, while global tech companies like Netflix and Apple have restricted their services.

The Kremlin earlier this month banned Twitter and Facebook from the Russian internet, and on Monday it blocked access to Instagram. Russian Instagram influencers posted tearful goodbye videos, urging followers to move to platforms they could still access.

Russia has rapidly and drastically entered into a type of digital isolation, cutting off millions of citizens from access to accurate information and online spaces to express opinions. As Moscow seeks to stifle dissent and control the narrative over its invasion of Ukraine, digital and human rights groups are worried about the future of Russia's internet.

In addition to the Kremlin blocking access to numerous online platforms and news sites, several companies and outlets have been forced to suspend their operations after the country passed a law that makes it a serious crime to publish information the government deems as "fake."

The law also came as the Kremlin sought to spread a mountain of misinformation and disinformation about the war in Ukraine, leading to major platforms like YouTube to remove or label state-controlled Russian media.

TikTok early in March announced it would block Russian users from live streaming or uploading new videos, citing the "fake news" law. But the company went even further in restricting content for Russian users, according to a Tuesday report from the non-profit tech transparency group Tracking Exposed.

TikTok appeared to block 95% of the content on the platform from Russian users, including the accounts of French President Emmanuel Macron and the United Nations, as well as from the platform's most popular stars like Charli D'Amelio.

"It is the first time a global social media platform has restricted access to content at this scale," Tracking Exposed said in a tweet.

Major international news organizations, including the BBC, CNN, and Bloomberg, also suspended service in Russia, citing the "fake news" law.

"It's a very bad situation right now, and we're trying to make sure that the human rights of people are respected," said Natalia Krapiva, the tech-legal counsel at the non-profit Access Now, which works to protect digital access globally.

Tech companies pulling out of Russia or platforms vastly restricting services could hurt average Russians, Krapiva said, as well as Ukrainians who are in occupied territories who can only access the Russian internet.

"While obviously there's legitimate concerns and the need to impose sanctions on Russia, some of the actions are now basically isolating and disconnecting people who are in fact opposing the war," Krapiva told Insider.

As people who use the Russian internet continue to become more digitally isolated, some have taken efforts to keep connected through the use of Virtual Private Networks. VPNs allow people to connect to the internet through a secondary, remote server that can bypass specific country's restrictions.

Surfshark, a VPN company based in Lithuania, told Insider its average weekly sales in Russia had increased by 3500% since February 24 the day Russia invaded Ukraine. The largest spike occurred March 5 and 6, the company said, when Russia announced it would take action to block access to Twitter and Facebook.

"Such a rapid surge means that people living in Russia are actively looking for ways to avoid government surveillance and censorship, be it accessing blocked websites or social media such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, or Instagram," said Gabriele Racaityte, the spokesperson for Surfshark.

VPN demand surged amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to data from the digital trend and insight company SensorTower. The demand for VPN services in Russia reached a new peak Monday at 2,692% compared to the average demand in the week prior to the invasion of Ukraine, the company said.

As Russia increasingly limits access to the internet, some outlets and platforms have also tried to build workarounds to censorship. The New York Times launched a channel on Telegram with updates about the war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Twitter last week debuted a version of its social-networking platform on Tor, Ars Technica reported, although it did not tie the announcement to the invasion. (Tor is a software that allows users to anonymously browse the web and can be used to access the dark web.)

The Russian government has blocked at least 384 domains related to its invasion of Ukraine since the conflict began as of Monday, according to VPN review and tracking company Top10VPN, including websites for global news outlets, BBC News, Deutsche Welle, Ukrayinska Pravda, and Radio Free Liberty.

In total, 203 news domains have been blocked in Russia, according to Top10VPN, the majority being Ukrainian news services. There are also "growing numbers of independent Russian and foreign services with local language sites" that have likewise been blocked, according to the data.

Despite the rise in VPN downloads, Krapiva said not everyone has access to VPN services. People who aren't as tech-savvy and others may be unaware of them or unable to download them, and there's also a cost for VPN services, especially ones that are safe and secure.

Others may have issues paying for them because of western sanctions that have resulted in restricting access to certain western payment methods, Krapiva said, including Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. Human rights organizations warn that the risk of Russians becoming cut off from the global internet remains high.

"Millions of Russians rely on the internet for information on current affairs and communication with the outside world amid unprecedented government censorship," said Hugh Williamson, the Europe and Central Asia director at the non-profit Human Rights Watch, in a blog post on Monday.

"Foreign tech companies should seek to provide services and products to people in Russia to help them access the internet and mitigate the risks of isolation."

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What happens when social media and news go dark in Russia - Business Insider

Imagine it's the 2010s; you're listening to Lana del Rey's Summertime Sadness and you're scrolling through everyones favourite microblogging site Tumblr.

In its prime, Tumblr wasn't just a social networking platform. It was a lifestyle an aesthetic, even. Just think of how many people were dying to achieve the 'Tumblr' look. And this opens up an interesting conversation on how social media can influence pop culture and vice versa.

But as these things usually go, there came a point when users somewhat forgot about using Tumblr, and platforms like Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat were all the rage.

Nevertheless, what was the reason users migrated away from this platform and is Tumblr really making a comeback?

Let's investigate:

There was no need for users to have different profiles on a multitude of social networks. After all, when Tumblr was in its heyday (around 2012 to 2015), Instagram was in its infancy and Twitter was still building momentum.

But, when the social media platform decided to ban mature content on its platform, there was a sudden and dramatic decrease in usage. As thousands of blogs featured this type of content, it led to them all being shut down.

Many users opposed this shift in policy and it was believed to contradict the "body positive space that was instrumental in building community and exploring identities".

What's more, many believe Tumblr's reluctance to include video content on the platform is another reason for the mass migration away from the platform. As this is currently one of the most sought after content types on social media, not accommodating this gap in the market was a major misstep for the brand.

Elaborating on this, former Tumblr user Haley Peterson for Mashable says, "I think part of [what made Tumblr die] was the growing vanity around social platforms, where your image and content provides a reward for sharing yourself or an edited version of yourself."

As visual as Tumblr is, the above definitely rings true. Now, social media is a visual place where users go to show the best parts of their lives and get likes and comments to validate that. But Tumblr was a better place for text posts and curated content.

Despite this, Tumblr is experiencing an unexpected resurgence.

But don't just take our word for it let the stats do the talking:

*Image sourced from Reddit.

Possible reasoning behind this trend is that, as a society, we are experiencing mass nostalgia. During the pandemic years, we've all found ourselves yearning for simpler times. Nowadays, users are spread so thinly amongst all the different social media platforms that they often are spoilt for choice.

Were you an avid Tumblr user? Would you consider using it again? Be sure to let us know in the comments section below.

Tumblr tumblr aesthetic what is tumblr what is tumblr used for what happened to Tumblr 2014 Tumblr Tumblr comeback is Tumblr making a comeback

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The comeback of Tumblr: Everything you need to know - Media Update