SHARETHISLIVESOCIAL MEDIA CONFERENCE 2013

11 JULY, LONDON #CIPRSM

SHARE THIS LIVESOCIAL MEDIA CONFERENCE 2013

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SOCIAL MEDIA: A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEFROM THE ROMANS TO THE INTERNET

TOM STANDAGE@tomstandage

What is social media?

“Media we get from other people, exchanged along social connections,

creating a distributed discussion or community”

Social-media environmentshave existed for centuries

MEPL

“I sent you on March 24tha copy of Balbus’ letterto me and of Caesar’sletter to him”— Cicero

“You say my letter has been widely published: well, I don't care. Indeed,

I myself allowed several people to take a copy of it” — Cicero

RGM Köln

“After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the

church of the Laodiceans andthat you in turn read the letterfrom Laodicea.”— Paul, Colossians

Wikimedia

“Hardly 14 days had passed when these propositions were known throughout Germany and within

four weeks almost all of Christendom was familiar

with them.”— Friedrich Myconius

“They are printed and circulated far beyond my expectation.”

— Martin Luther

MEPL, London Lib

“The Coffeehouses particularly are very commodious for a free

Conversation, and for reading…all manner of printed News…

and other Prints that come out Weekly or casually.”

“[The coffeehouse] admits of no distinction of persons,

but gentleman, mechanic, lord and scoundrel mix, and are allof a piece.” — Samuel Butler, 1668

Beinecke RBML/Yale/Flickr

So what happened to old social media?

MEPL

But now social media is back— thanks to the Internet

“New”media

“Old”media

2000

“Really old”media

“New”media

“Old”media

2000183360BC

Ancient social-media systems hold lessons for us today

1. Is social media merely a dangerous distraction

that wastes time?

Social networking

Social notworking

“Why doth solid and serious learning decline, and few or none

follow it now in the university?Because of coffee-

houses, where they spend all their time.”

— Anthony Wood, Oxford, 1670s

“Hours are spent in talking, and less profitable reading of

newspapers…scholars are so greedy after news that they neglect all for

it…” — Cambridge don, 1670s

“Great enemies to diligence and industry…the ruin of many serious and hopeful young gentlemen and

tradesmen…”— pamphlet, 1673

Enemies of diligence and industry? No, crucibles of innovation!

2. What is the role of social media in revolutions?

“Fromthe rapid spread of the theses, I gather what the greater part of the

nation thinks of indulgences.” —Martin Luther

Social media does not cause revolutions but helps them along

by synchronising opinion and acting as an “accelerant”

3. Is social media a fad?

“Really old”media

“New”media

“Old”media

183360BC 2000

Social media is not a fad. The mass-media era

was a historical anomaly

Modern social-media users are heirs to a centuries-long tradition

Blogs = pamphletsMicroblogs = coffeehouses

Tumblr/Pinterest = commonplace books

SHARE THIS LIVESOCIAL MEDIA CONFERENCE 2013

#CIPRSM

SOCIAL MEDIA: A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEFROM THE ROMANS TO THE INTERNET

TOM STANDAGE@tomstandage