The Certitude of Cultivating a Digital Identity and Digital Presence
Katia D. Maxwell
Master of Arts in Learning and Technology, Royal Roads University
LRTN 521
Elizabeth Childs
April 18, 2021
The Certitude of Cultivating a Digital Identity and a Digital Presence
My digital identity and my digital presence tend to run below the radar. That is by design. While social media is a great way to meet individuals, groups and peer communities (AVID Editors, Adobe Suite users) there is a dark side to being online, which I have experienced so then, I believe, as a racialised person, I must be on guard. A recent example of that would be zoom bombing. As racialised individuals held meetings, the meeting would be hijacked and various images and words would take over the screen. “Digital ID, much like other technological innovations such as nuclear energy and even the ubiquitous GPS, can be used to create value or inflict harm.” (White et al., 2019) Thus, for some individuals, having a digital ID is not something they are comfortable with because they are either concerned about or have experienced harm. For example, Interac News (2019) surveyed 1500 Canadian Adults. “65% of Canadians fear digital IDs could be at a greater risk of theft than a physical ID, despite robust digital security.” Cultivating a digital ID, digital presence (DIDP) is twofold. First establish yourself as part of the digital network, whether that be blogging, vlogging, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn, you have a social media or online presence. Second create a digital ID and use that for services instead of carrying a physical piece of ID like a driver’s license. Exploring my digital identity and digital presence (DIDP), I will focus on the former and touch on the latter.
I am a Professor in the School of Contemporary Media, Faculty of Creative Industries, at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario. For twenty years, I was a TV Producer responsible for covering a large geographical area. I continue to be a freelance Producer and a freelance Writer. I am a community presence; a civil rights activist and I am well known; sought after as a keynote speaker. The Federal New Democratic Party would like me to run in the next Federal election. These activities, whether personal or career related, result in conflicting thoughts about social media.Therein lies the predicament as outlined by Miller (2020), “One of the challenges of using social media to create a professional online presence is the personal nature of social media.” I have to be diligent and make sure my online reputation stays intact. Fake News has shown us that fear is grounded in reality. “far too many people actually believe everything they read on the Internet, provided the source seems credible enough or fits into a narrative we want to believe – a well-documented phenomenon psychologists call ‘confirmation bias ’”( Resource Centre/Online Reputation Management 2020). Due to my professions, my positions, the reputations my family and I, there is no urgency to cultivate an online presence or an online identity.
Digital Broadband Search Latest Statistics – The 2021 Edition, breaks social media use down by platform, age, and gender. The statistics show how much social media matters to most of us. “Social media has come a long way in its short 20-year history. Many thought it might just be a fad, but while many sites have come and gone, the concept of social media remains strong and become part of the fabric of our global society.” (Broadband Search, 2021). In keeping with how much a part of our lives social media is, Auxier and Anderson (2021) report YouTube and Facebook continue to see the highest traffic. Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest. Reddit and Nextdoor all report continued growth. For a paper dated April 7, 2021 Pew Research Centre interviewed just over 1500 people above the age of 18 years. Auxier, Anderson (2021) spoke to individuals who have a landline and individuals who have a cellphone, and that study essentially corroborates the Broadband statistics. Around half the planet uses social media – 3.6 billion people. Generationally speaking, each group (GenZ, Millennials, GenX, Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation) have behaviours which are consistent within their age group. “GenZers and millennials spend similar amounts of time on social media but use that time differently. Generation Zers focus on fewer platforms while millennials tend to use a greater variety of social media channels” (Cox 2019). It was interesting to read that because that in keeping with what leisurely notice with those around me. Each person uses platforms in several ways. I used FaceBook as therapy. My friends are indeed friends. I do not accept random requests nor requests from individuals outside my social circle. I have about 115 people on my friends list. When I look at my friends, they have hundreds or a couple thousand friends and they use FB as a light social gathering for jokes, recipes, words of wisdom, and social justice causes they have in common. “What people hope to gain from their experience online drives their social media habits, and people use different platforms for various reasons such as: Staying in touch with friends and family; Finding a sense of community; Searching for solutions to problems or information; Looking for ideas of inspiration; Entertainment: Promoting professional endeavours; Expanding professional network” (Cox 2019). Some of these items apply to how I may use social media and have not cultivated an online presence. I have a clear understanding of how social media works for my brand; however, my brand is held closely to my chest. At the same time, as I work away to earn my Master of Arts in Learning and Technology, having a digital ID and digital presence is expected and graded.
Cultivating an online scholarly presence as it relates to this programme, is something to sit with and consider. Creating a Google scholar profile, cultivating a research-based presence would offer support as I move through this course, which I am unsure of. “If you would like to join or start conversations on Twitter, the best way to see how it works is to observe somebody else’s profile. Today we suggest looking at the profiles of some EUI researchers and professors and notice how they share either their thoughts and their own research, or something interesting they’ve heard at a conference” (Signoriello 2019). Following Twitter users who are in the same or related field would most likely afford me the opportunity to find more information, researchers and others who may be influencers in academia. If I follow that model, my privacy remains and that is a valid position. “If you prefer just quiet observation, that’s fine too: by following relevant institutions (the Library has an account too!) and people in your field, you’ll have a constant stream of information coming your way. Find the hashtags that research communities use to tag their content” (Signoriello (2019). Using repositories, accessing and publishing papers under open access are open to me and ask nothing in return. I have access to thousands of articles. I can comment or reach out if I choose, however, no one is coming in to my circle “Open Access means open to anyone, anywhere to read, share and reuse. That means connecting with interdisciplinary researchers in other fields as well as peers in your community.” Signoriello (2019).
My plan is to cultivate and establish a social media identity and a social media presence (DIDP) specifically as it relates to the Master of Arts in Learning and Technology programme I am currently enrolled in. The Visitor – Resident model is a starting point. I will study that and see if something shows itself. “Digital literacies are not themselves set in stone but provide a foundation for adopting and adapting to emerging practices” (Beetham 2015). Considering this, taking stock of what platforms are currently in use would be the first step, followed by what social media platforms are of interest. In addition, check what platforms lend themselves to a common thread (MALAT). It is possible then, to maintain a DIDP that addresses my academic self and perhaps the learning and technology professional self. Measuring progress will be done in layers, taking a look and understand what my logarithms show, how I currently interact online and how much content and what content do I post. I will create goals for myself and track my achievements as I cultivate my DIDP.
In building that personal cyberinfrastructure, students not only would acquire crucial technical skills for their digital lives but also would engage in work that provides richly teachable moments ranging from multimodal writing to information science, knowledge management, bibliographic instruction, and social networking. (Campbell September 2009)
Creating and participating in DIDP, has the potential to reveal any number of resources; wider than I may have perceived there to be. Moreover, navigating to Open Access Tools and Services, reveals more resources: Unpaywall, Open Access Button, LERU Open Science Roadmap (League of European Research Universities, Open APC (Article Processing Charges), ESAC, DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals, OpenAire, Horizon2020, DART, Pleiadi, Registery of Open Access Repository Mandates and Policies (ROARMAP) and the WorldWideScience.org (EUI Publications 2020). Uncovering, experimenting, researching and studying methods that may support goals and outcomes I am delivering to my students is worth looking at. As a result, as I empower myself by finding new material and fresh sources for students, those students will be empowered as well. Apart from introducing students to new ways of thinking and participating in their learning, with certainty, they have the opportunity to begin to cultivate their own digital identity and begin to form their own formal digital presence. Amy Jo Martin, Founder and CEO of Digital Royalty points out that there is no limit to the digital skies. “Social media is the ultimate democratiser, equaliser, uniter and divider because it gives a voice and platform to anyone who is willing to engage” (Martin 2017).
References
Beetham, Helen. (November 2015)Framing digital capabilities for staff – deliverables: Landscapte review. Retrieved May 3, 2021. https://digitalcapability.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2015/11/10/framing-digital-capabilities-for-staff-deliverables/
Campbell, Gardner. W. (September 2009) A Personal Cyberinfrastructure. Retrieved May 3, 2021. https://er.educause.edu/articles/2009/9/https://er.educause.edu/articles/2009/9/a-personal-cyberinfrastructurea-personal-cyberinfrastructure
Fiesolana, B. (2021, March 31). Publish in Open Access. Retrieved April 19, 2021. https://www.eui.eu/Research/Library/EUIPublications/OAPublishing
Fiesolana, B. (2020, December 04). Cultivate an Online Scholarly Presence. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.eui.eu/Research/Library/EUIPublications/OnlinePresence How to Protect Your Online Reputation. (2020, September 14). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.reputationdefender.com/blog/orm/how-to-protect-your-online-reputationHo
Martin, Amy Jo (2017, January 18) State of the (Media) Union. Medium.Com. https://medium.com/@AmyJoMartin/social-media-is-the-ultimate-democratizer-equalizer-uniter-and-divider-because-it-gives-a-voice-fd8c7b5c6c4e
Newsroom.interac.ca. (2019, September 04). Retrieved April 19, 2021, from https://newsroom.interac.ca/trust-and-identity-in-a-digital-world/
(2020). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://hospitalityinsights.ehl.edu/top-tips-manage-protect-online-presence EHL – Lécole Hoteliere de Lausanne
Signoriello, F. (2019, October 23). Impact Challenge: Day 3 – Social Media and Academia. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://blogs.eui.eu/library/impact-challenge-3-social-media/
Surprising social Media statistics – the 2021 edition. (2021). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/social-media-facts-statistics
Toby A. Cox / 2 July 2019. (2019, July 02). How different generations use social media. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://themanifest.com/social-media/how-different-generations-use-social-media
White, O., Madgavkar, A., Manyika, J., Mahajan, D., Bughin, J., M. M., & Sperling, O. (2019, April). GI Digital Identification: A Key to Inclusive Growth [PDF]. New York: McKinsey Global Institute