Final Blog post

    Everyone who has been on the internet has an online footprint. Any time you look up something, post on social media, or even read something online your online footprint gets bigger. An online footprint is what a person has been looking up, posting, or accounts they have online. This can be good and bad for people who have a big online footprint. It has become routine for companies to “research” potential employees prior to hiring or interviewing them so an online footprint is very important.

     For some people, an online footprint can be a good thing. People can create accounts and posts that show how professional they are in the workplace. Posting professional achievements can be impactful if companies research you when considering you for a job. Social media platforms can be used to market yourself to potential clients or employers. Adding charities or hobbies may also positively impact your image if it’s viewed that you are a caring and interesting person.

    An online footprint also has its disadvantages. Online footprints can never be removed. Once you look up something or even post about something it stays on your footprint forever. Even with deleting your post or browser history it can still be looked up and found. Social media accounts can also be a disadvantage for your footprint. When posting on a social media account you need to make sure that what you are posting is appropriate since everyone will be able to see what you posted and what you are tagged in. People should be cautious with posting political preferences or strong opinions. Companies or future clients will judge you based on what they see and may decide not to hire you if they disagree with your views or if your posts make it appear that you are irresponsible. 

    My online presence is mostly made up of social media accounts. I currently have three Instagram accounts, one being my personal and the other two being my car and my grandfather's car. My Facebook, and Linked In account as well as images from my time on a wakeboard team come up. From the tags of me that come up, someone would see that I am a student at HPU and I am very interested in sports cars, trucks, jeeps, boats, and jet skis. My posts also show that I was a high school wrestler and competed in wakeboarding competitions with the SouthTown Riders. It also shows that I spend time with my family as I am tagged by family members in some of my posts. I think it paints a picture of a responsible young person who has an athletic background and a hobby involving engines and has maintained a good relationship with my family. It also shows that enjoy lake activities and that I would make a good team player as I was a member of a wrestling team and a wakeboard team throughout middle and most of high school.  I always try to keep my accounts professional and not post anything political or controversial. I understand that this can keep me from getting a job and that others form opinions about me based on what they see. At this point, I don’t think there is anything I would want to remove. My parents always stressed the importance of what I post online and that my online image can help or hurt me.

 

Blog post 11

 In class, I learned about the spiral of silence. This theory is about how people naturally get approval from others to speak their opinions. This can make unpopular opinions that could be correct hard to reach the public since people who dont get support silence their ideas. People who finance their opinions are fearing of social rejection and isolation. This theory is very fascinating since this still works in society today. Some people may post a controversial post on social media and get a lot of negative comments, which can lead them to remove the bar later on for fear of being isolated. 

Blog post 10

Diffusion theory is the theory that products go in a wave of popularity and how many products are sold. In the beginning, it's the pioneers. They are the first to try this new product and give advice to the people who created the product. Then the wave grows and goes to the early adoptors. These people hear about the product coming out and want to be one of the first to try it out and the first to accept this product into the real world. The wave grows bigger into early majority. Most people have the product now and have taken it. Then the graph starts going down and goes to the late majority. These guys were stubborn at first but saw how good the product was from everyone else and finally accepted that it was going to be used everywhere. Then the wave goes all the way down almost to the bottom is the loggers. These people were against the product but are finally coming to the realization that they need this to keep up with the rest of the world. 

For example, a personal computer, or PC, started out in 1977. The early adoptors saw them in the selves and knew this would change the world. Then in the 80's, the early majority had PCs in there homes and at schools. Then in the '90s, late adoptors had them. At this point, almost everyone owned a pc. But a recent report says that in 2021 pc sales slowed down significantly. By now, everyone has a PC or a laptop with them. Many people dont need to buy another computer unless their computer gets too old or breaks.

The Apple II from 1977

2023 Apple MacBook Pro

Blog post 8

Some pros to like Google and Safari knowing your information is that the government can use it to flag people who might be a danger to others. Another pro is that companies can find out what consumers are looking for and either pushes a product that might entice them or create a new one they like. Then companies can also use this to send this to people who are interested in what they are trying to push instead of pushing things that a viewer won't want at all.

Some cons about sites like Google and Safari knowing your information is that companies can take your information and try to sell you products based on what you looked at. Another con is that people can easily hack your information since everyone's information is in one place. 

National security is trying to do its job by blacklisting companies from different countries. They believe that they are trying to repress the Muslim minority. But one blacklisted company said it was a misunderstanding and they should be blacklisted. 

There is now a company that has cameras that can track down a person'ss face and figure out who they are bytheire face and even how they walk. If this gets taken control of by someone else, this can make taking other people's information very easy.

Blog post 9

The illusory truth effect is when people hear false information relatively, they start believing it. 

For example, in Nazi Germany, Hitler used propaganda and repeated information. Hitler lied to everyone when he gave speeches and reiterated that it was the Jews' fault that Germany was in ruins. Hitler also taught his ideas in schools where they could be replicated to kids daily, so they believed them. He also told people that he would rebuild Germany to where it was before WWI and more. He also told people that the Arion race was superior, and because he repeated this multiple times, people started believing him about this as well. Hitler also repeated the undesirables' ideas that anyone who wasn't German was handicapped, Jewish, gay, and black. Hitler even locked down people who tried to write wrong about his ideas to keep people believing in his campaign and regime. 

America also uses this for campaigns. For example, Woodrow Wilson's campaign was that he would keep America out of the war. He repeated this, and everyone thought he would do anything to keep America out of the fighting because it wasn't America's problem. He then got elected by those principles, but later on, he joined in WW1. Another campaign that used this was the Trump campaign. He said that he would "Make America Great Again." He said this in almost every speech during his campaign and noted he would build a wall on the American and Mexican border. He made many Americans think he would do these things because he repeated them every time he spoke and reaped them on signs and flags. 

Even companies use this tactic as well. When you see the same ad repeatedly, they are trying to put in your head that this product is good and try to make you believe whatever they are showing is true. For example, when Im watching hockey, I see the same three commercials and can guarantee that I will see a Burger King commercial come on and talk about how their burgers are better than other companies. 

Social media can also use this tactic as well. When scrolling through Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and ect may see many posts about the same topic. Then if you click or tap on a particular image or video, the social media app will push to send more of that information that way. Then some news on social media platforms is false. Many are photoshopped, edited audio, and can even have false information. Then when you look at one more of the same or similar information comes up. This creates an endless loop of false information.

Blog post 7

 Something I learned in class was about the first TV. I never knew that the first person to invent the TV was only 21 years old. I feel like it makes you think that almost anyone can create something no matter how old you are. I also never knew that Russia was trying to beat us in the race to create a TV. Russia was the first to have images on a screen but Taylor was the first to actually create a TV for people to use in there homes. This invention really changed the world.

Blog post 6

 Many anti-war voices have told people to pull troops out of the war because of tax dollars, lost lives, and a lousy economy. Many of these voices get quieted down even to this day in America. People have had to use sites many people haven't heard of to get their voices out. This is because many people in the government dont want to look bad and try to hush people in times of war, even if it is a waste for the US. Since many anti-war voices are on nonmainstream sites is because the government is trying to silence people so politicians still look good. For example, in WWI, people where not allowed to talk badly about the US and how they shouldn't be in this war. They are trying to do that same thing with the Ukraine war and how the US is sending supplies over, which can start more significant issues with Russia.