This book won the Erving Goffman Award for Outstanding Scholarship in the Ecology of Social Interaction 2014 Technological changes have radically altered the ways in which people use visual images. One such impact has been the transformation of computer-mediated-communication (CMC) into social networking. With a focus on social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Second Life, and YouTube, this book describes the theoretical and historical background of computer-mediated communication alongside the cultural changes occurring with the introduction of digital media in society. Designed for students, this text introduces CMC terminology, methods for analyzing online exchanges, and theories on the relationship between CMC, social networks, and culture. By exploring both the meanings associated with CMC and social networks, and the relationship of CMC to culture, the goal of this text is to provide students with methods to better understand the socially-oriented world in which they live and to understand the characteristics that make social networks successful. Special features including terms, examples, CMC theory, and suggestions for student exercises.

Contents: Communicating Through the Internet – Social Networking – Online Presentation and Personal Branding – Social Norms – Misbehavior Online – Internet Relationships – Virtual Communities – The Interface Is the Marketplace – User-Generated Content and Remix Culture – Relationships and Social Capital – Social Issues and Social Networks – Social Network Generation.