I wanted to write about the article Dr. Dennen posted: Why Every Social Media Manager Should Be Under 25
Well I will be 25 in December of this year, and I can completely understand where the author, Cathryn Sloane is coming from when she entitled her article “Why Every Social Media Manager Should Be Under 25.”. I grew up in this social media generation as Sloane described it and I experienced the excitement and confusion of joining Friendfinder, Myspace, and Facebook. I witnessed the original layouts and watched these social endeavors explode. However, in my opinion it is a bold statement to say that, “ No one else will ever be able to have as clear an understanding of these services, no matter how much they may think they do.” While perhaps having a slight advantage having social media catapulted into my every move at a young age, I believe a learner who has not been subjected to social media in the same manner as myself and the author, still has the same ability to completely understand social media and web 2.0 for that just as well as someone under 25. It may take more time or maybe more effort but I think it is definitely possible. As far as pursuing a career in social media management it would probably be beneficial to an older manager to collaborate with a younger manager. I do agree with the author that “The truth is, regardless of age, some people have a better handle on social media than others [...] The key is that we learned to use social media socially before professionally, rather than vice versa or simultaneously.” While this is a very pertinent skill, vice versa can produce the same outcome.
I also disagreed with the author's statement that no one can understand social media the way the under 25 crowd can. I am now 36 and I was a reluctant joiner to the world of social media. I started with MySpace in 2004 and was soon checking the site before I did anything else on a computer (ah, the days before everyone had everything on their phone). Although Facebook was growing in leaps and bounds, I waited until 2008 to get an account. (It's original use for the college-aged crowd scared me off.) Now I'm on Facebook more than I care to admit.
ReplyDeleteKeeping blogs have also become part of me, an extension of the written journals I have kept my whole life. Maybe I just *think* I have a handle on social media as well as a 25 year-old, but I know that I am more active in the realm of social media than some of my under-25 friends and relations.
I think you are one of many. I don't think one age is better than another, it's about subject mastery.
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