You're Not Just Anyone

A fun snippet from Coldplay @ Shoreline, July 2009

Chris Martin's smooth incorporation of the phrase I left my heart in San Francisco into lyrics of a hit song was just one of the several instances that the band connected with its loving fans last Monday night. There is something about seeing an artist live. It vitalizes, humanizes, connects. Not just sound I hear emanating from my car radio or through my headphones, but humans building an emotional connection through music. A personal connection.

But obviously, "live" isn't always an option. That's where digital media comes into play.

Over 200 videos have been posted on YouTube of Coldplay's 2009 Shoreline performance. Posted by fans like myself, who saw the show the way I saw it. But right here, in this very same browser, I can go to Coldplay's Twitter, and watch a video of the way Chris Martin and Will Champion saw that very same concert (http://www.twitvid.com/3D6AA).

The two hours I waited for the band to grace the stage were not idly spent. I searched Facebook updates to see whether anyone I know was at the concert so that we could bond over it later. I searched Twitter to see what other people waiting in the audience had to say. A public update by @Bubbva directed my attention to the area of the lawn that the band would be performing later in the night. I agreed with another fan about the electric atmosphere (the fans? the scorching heat?). This wasn't just a mass of people attending a concert. It was a network all intertwined and connected.

@katyperry attended the Coldplay concert in LA last night with her "bff shanny." @mileycyrus is having a "mommy and me day." @lancearmstrong is taking me along le Tour de France. And nothing can come between @barackobama and his 1,770,289 followers. Not even a body guard. My point being (yes, this was all going somewhere), these social networks are facilitating connection without constraint. So what if she's a teen-pop sensation or he's the president of the United States? We have no qualms shooting @anyone our unsolicited 140 characters or less. They are just like us, living everyday lives. Being a fan in the audience, going out to lunch with mom, and giving speeches about health care reform (okay maybe not that last one). We are given glimpses of their lives from their eyes only to realize that they are strangely similar to our own experiences. They are not the scripted personalities we see on television or read about in magazines and newspapers.

These social networking sites also allow for context collapse. I present myself differently to different people when we meet in the flesh. The way I discuss with my professors differs from the way I interact with my friends differs from the way I am with my family. But when it comes to a status update, these distinctions are blurred. No matter who they are, if they are my follower or friend (the Twitter/Facebook connotation, respectively), they are privy to the exact same update. No different whether they are a close friend or a distant acquaintance. Similarly, no matter whether you are a fan or friend, you know what the members of Coldplay were up to this weekend...off the stage.

That doesn't necessarily need to be a bad thing. Yes, this social network phenomenon has its downsides, but it also has its upsides. Digital media is giving us a voice -- the opportunity to be heard by everyone. We are not anonymous entities lost in the masses of average people. No matter who you are, from the privacy of your own computer or mobile device, you can "broadcast yourself" to the world. Just like President Obama.

It's breaking down boundaries. It's allowing humanity, not just a friends circle, a family, an organization, a city, or a state, but humanity as a whole, to connect and take action. So while new words like "tweet" or "friended" may sound ridiculous and following may be slightly voyeuristic, these capabilities are paving the path for our (not my, not your, but our) bright future as humans.

Catalyst: Posted by @google: RT @youtube: A cultural anthropologist goes "native" into the YouTube ecosystem to study how digital media shapes us: http://bit.ly/4dcFfg