Are Hashtags useful? and if so How? and to Whom? These are the questions asked in the article
Are Hashtags Actually a Useful Social Media Engagement Tool? http://www.siliconcloud.com/blog/bid/92928/are-hashtags-actually-a-useful-social-media-engagement-tool?source=Blog_Email_%5BAre%20Hashtags%20Actuall
The writer, Keenen suggests that they are not and his argument is solid. They may direct traffic and generate interest around a campaign but they also are our of the original creators control once they are posted and begin to circulate. They also don't serve much function except to take up space. So why do we use them? Well, I would say that it doesn't matter why; We just do. They have become part of the pop culture of the Internet, a cool way to introduce a topic and share it and now it has become part of our experience of the Internet and the way we communicate. Once something has become a part of our shared cultural experience it is difficult to remove it, it becomes associated with other elements of our daily experience and developes the quality of a ritual. Thats what I think hashtags are to us now, a part of the ritual of online communication.
I think this is a silly thing to write an article about; hashtags are a silly thing to begin with. I find it interesting though, when you mention "social ritual". The internet is host to many different kind of "social rituals", with unique abbreviations (like "LOL" which was born here and is here to stay) and hashtags. I wonder if hashtags will leech their way into other parts of life and begin to modify other forms of communication? A very abstract topic, but interesting nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteI hate the way LoL has infiltrated spoken conversation, but my hope is that it is a temporary fad like "rad", "groovy" and "dude" and will eventually fade away. Interestingly, or maybe not this post is the first time I have ever used a # in my life.
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