1 Anti-social media & carers in the 21st Century  - by Isaac Smith Presented by Dona L.Graham, Editor-in-Chief

 The Working Carers Gateway is a service initiative developed by the Disability and Aged Information Service Inc. (DAISI), based in Lismore on the NSW Far North Coast. Our partner in this project is NSW Health under its Carers Action Program.  Launched in 2005 with a NSW focus  Now nationally relevant and internationally active.  Website attracts visitors a month, popular monthly newsletter  Working carers are people who juggle paid employment with unpaid caring. They may care for a child, relative or friend who needs help because they are ill, frail, have a disability, chronic illness or are ageing. Recognition and support from employers, governments, service providers, and family and community members is vital to working carers. Who are we?

What is Social Media?  Social media are media for social interaction, using highly accessible and scalable communication techniques (wikipedia.org)  Facebook, the most popular social network, has grown exponentially in the past 3 years with almost 10 million users in Australia (insidefacebook.com)  Youtube, Flickr, Wikimedia, Myspace, Foursquare, ehow, Google Docs, Twitter

Is social media evil?  Social media is often portrayed as an evil that impacts on our lives. But is that true?  There is a big difference between creating an evil and reflecting an evil that is present in our community.  What is lost in the sensational coverage is the reason people are using social networking. They are looking for connection, for community.

Finding Community  Social Networks are primarily about finding community.  Social Media is rediscovering the community that has been lost in years of broadcast media and social isolation which dominate the modern world. “What makes social network sites unique is not that they allow individuals to meet strangers, but rather that they enable users to articulate and make visible their social networks. This can result in connections between individuals that would not otherwise be made, but that is often not the goal, and these meetings are frequently between “latent ties” (Haythornthwaite, 2005) who share some offline connection. On many of the large SNSs, participants are not necessarily “networking” or looking to meet new people; instead, they are primarily communicating with people who are already a part of their extended social network.” Danah Boyd and Nicole Ellison: Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and ScholarshipSocial Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship

Carer community  A carers’ life is a hectic one, so a carers’ private life is lived between the events that define the care recipient. These moments have in the past been filed by broadcast media, but are now becoming more communal through social media.  While many debate the value of online communities as “real” or “fake”, carers are using this medium to make connections and locate themselves in a community.  Social media is breaking down the isolation felt by many carers.

Facebook Community  The most popular communities on Facebook are not bad in nature. For every Mafia Wars (game), there is (network)  Citiville, Farmville, Causes, Phrases, Frontierville, @hearts, Ravenwood Fair, Give Hearts, Birthday Cards, Quiz Taco, Treasure Isle, Friend Buzz ...and more!

Comments on WCG  The Gateway has received 100’s of contributions since adding to our website the ability for readers to comment on our articles.  Giving readers the ability to participate in the discussion gives the article more relevance and life as it evolves with each addition.  As contributors are notified when new comments are added, they become part of a community that is expanding on the ideas and thoughts being expressed. They are forever connected with this piece of social media.

Stats on WCG  Embracing Social Media, giving readers the ability to create the content, has been a key to the growth and success of the WCG project.  Gateway growth from the start of 2008, is a clear reflection of constant upgrades and inclusion of new technologies.

What’s next?  No one really knows. In 2004 Facebook didn’t exist. A year ago no one would have believed that Apple would sell 20 million iPads in less than 12 months.  Waiting for tradition puts you well behind the people you are trying to reach and less able to help the people whose lives you are trying to change. “Today’s innovation is tomorrows tradition”

11 Thank You!