electronic communication and social networks. 3 questions: does the internet weaken community?...
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Electronic communication and
social networks
3 Questions:
Does the internet weaken community? Because people replace in-person relationship
with time spent online and out of the public realm?
Does the internet transform community? Is a new online ‘virtual community’ emerging
that allows people to participate in trans-local communities, freed of the bonds of geography?
Does the internet enhance community? By adding new forms of communication with
which to sustain relationships?
Benefits of community:
Companionship Support Access to information A sense of belonging A means of aggregating and expressing
hopes and grievances
Fragmentation or Integration?
While communities are composed of people similar in some respects, they are rarely completely homogeneous
Differences, like mutations in biology, are an important source of vitality for communities (innovation, information, friction, strength)
Do ECTs create isolated islands or bridges between worlds?
Why fragmentation?
Going online as escape from ‘real’ life The “Digital Divide” (some have access to
technology, some don’t) The “Daily Me” (easy to filter what you
see) The “Echo chamber”
Easy to find others who agree with you online Easy to ignore those who disagree with you
online
Why integration?
Connect across geography Easy to communicate with many
people simultaneously There’s so much content out there
that it’s easy to stumble upon unfamiliar content, discover new things, encounter new ways of looking at the world
A study of political blogs Hargittai, Gallo, and Kane. 2008. “Cross-
ideological discussions among conservative and liberal bloggers.” Public Choice 2008
Research Question: How much engagement with the ‘other side’ is evident in political blogs?
Blog: regularly updated website that posts entries in reverse-chronological order without editorial oversight
Left
Right
Sample of Blogs
Method
Collected content of each blog for 3 week-long periods June 6-12, 2004 (week before conventions) October 24-30, 2004 (week before
Presidential election) March 13-19, 2005 (nothing special)
Downloaded all content as text Coded all links to other sampled blogs
(links in posts, links in blogroll)
Descriptives
N = 5709 entries N = 883 links to other blogs 15 % of entries include a link to a
sampled blog (Many other links as well, to
mainstream news, etc.) Blogroll links
Blogroll links
Liberal
Conservative
Within post linksLiberal
Conservative
Summary so far
Most links are to other blogs with similar ideological position
However, no evidence of complete isolation in political blogs
Qualitative Analysis
What is going on in these links?
Strawman arguments
Disagreement on substance
Neutral non-politicalRedirectAgreement on
substance
C→L L→C43% 54%12% 16%
5% 6%36% 19%14% 5%
Conclusions
Political commentators much more likely to engage those who agree with them
Some engagement with the “other side”
Small amount of substantive engagement
Dominant pattern: fragmentation A few “weak ties”…
3 Questions:
Does the internet weaken community? Because people replace in-person relationship
with time spent online and out of the public realm?
Does the internet transform community? Is a new online ‘virtual community’ emerging
that allows people to participate in trans-local communities, freed of the bonds of geography?
Does the internet enhance community? By adding new forms of communication with
which to sustain relationships?