{"id":1069,"date":"2015-03-22T18:40:22","date_gmt":"2015-03-22T18:40:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sarahkyle27.wordpress.com\/?p=119"},"modified":"2015-03-22T18:40:22","modified_gmt":"2015-03-22T18:40:22","slug":"topic-4-social-media-businesses-and-ethics-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/2015\/03\/22\/topic-4-social-media-businesses-and-ethics-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Topic 4: Social Media, Businesses and Ethics"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Social media is a great tool for businesses. \u00a0Not only can they communicate with customers on an accessible (and increasingly popular) platform, but they can promote products and services to a massive audience &#8211; Twitter alone has\u00a0<span style=\"color:#000000;\"><strong>over 270 million active users<\/strong><\/span>.[1]<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to advertising, Twitter is also key to a successful campaign. \u00a0There&#8217;s now even the term &#8216;reactervising&#8217;: when businesses react\u00a0to live events with adverts. \u00a0A famous example of this was the Super Bowl blackout. \u00a0You can read more about that <a href=\"http:\/\/adage.com\/article\/special-report-super-bowl\/marketers-jump-super-bowl-blackout-twitter\/239575\/\" ><strong><span style=\"color:#3366ff;\">here. <\/span><\/strong><span style=\"color:#3366ff;\"><span style=\"color:#000000;\">[2]<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>But when does advertising on social media become unethical? When does &#8216;hijacking&#8217; of hashtags go wrong?<\/p>\n<p>Though I won&#8217;t be focusing on privacy in this post, this also raises the question of whether advertising on social media is ever ethical (specifically with regards to\u00a0targeted advertisements). If you&#8217;re interested in digital privacy, watch<strong><span style=\"color:#3366ff;\"> <a style=\"color:#3366ff;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.ted.com\/talks\/glenn_greenwald_why_privacy_matters\" >this TED Talk<\/a><a style=\"color:#3366ff;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.ted.com\/talks\/glenn_greenwald_why_privacy_matters\" >.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This week, I looked\u00a0to see which companies would &#8216;hijack&#8217; the #eclipse2015 on Twitter to promote their brand, rather than contribute to the discussion of the eclipse. Below\u00a0is a handful that stood out (with BMW&#8217;s perhaps being the least subtle).<\/p>\n<p><strong>#Eclipse2015<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Persil:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" width=\"550\">\n<p>Here\u2019s one you CAN look directly at. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Eclipse2015?src=hash\">#Eclipse2015<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/t.co\/o7clR6Hgr7\">pic.twitter.com\/o7clR6Hgr7<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Persil UK &amp; Ireland (@persiluk) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/persiluk\/status\/578835905605079041\">March 20, 2015<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Kopparberg UK:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" width=\"550\">\n<p>Here is an artist&#39;s impression if the British weather is letting you down right now. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/eclipse2015?src=hash\">#eclipse2015<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/t.co\/vZrwkpuecD\">pic.twitter.com\/vZrwkpuecD<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Kopparberg UK (@KopparbergUK) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KopparbergUK\/status\/578853420473446401\">March 20, 2015<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>BMW:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" width=\"550\">\n<p>Hello darkness: <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BMW?src=hash\">#BMW<\/a> Night Vision with Dynamic Light Spot gives you a clear view of everything. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/eclipse2015?src=hash\">#eclipse2015<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/t.co\/ssotftjUhh\">pic.twitter.com\/ssotftjUhh<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; BMW (@BMW) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BMW\/status\/578834672819421185\">March 20, 2015<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Oreo Cookie, however, launched their own hashtag: #oreoeclipse. \u00a0This was also successful, and arguably more &#8216;ethical&#8217; since\u00a0it didn&#8217;t\u00a0&#8216;piggyback&#8217; an existing hashtag trend:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" width=\"550\">\n<p>Once again <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Oreo\">@Oreo<\/a> wins &quot;Reactvertising&quot;.  <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/oreoeclipse?src=hash\">#oreoeclipse<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/t.co\/a6X8iuD0ZS\">pic.twitter.com\/a6X8iuD0ZS<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Adly (@TheAdly) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheAdly\/status\/579551403342872576\">March 22, 2015<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Though the above examples are not offensive, John Oliver collects a number of inappropriate and unethical uses of corporations &#8216;hijacking&#8217; hashtags. \u00a0In fact, he argues that corporations on Twitter are entirely inappropriate, comparing them to uninvited guests at a cocktail party. \u00a0This\u00a0raises an interesting point on whether businesses abuse Twitter&#8217;s status as &#8216;a platform of communication&#8217;.[3]<\/p>\n<div data-shortcode=\"caption\" id=\"attachment_123\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rG_7xur1iRc\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-123 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/sarahkyle27.files.wordpress.com\/2015\/03\/john-oliver-topic-4.jpg?w=620&#038;h=358\" alt=\"Click image to view the video\" width=\"620\" height=\"358\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Click image to view video<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>John Oliver shames corporations for their unethical approach to meaningful hashtags. However, \u00a0a recent BBC podcast argues \u00a0big corporations &#8216;can&#8217;t feel guilt&#8217; when they publicly shamed online. \u00a0Instead, they have a &#8216;soft underbelly&#8217; to shame, purely because\u00a0they care about their &#8216;reputation&#8217;. [4] \u00a0This makes them different to individuals like Jamie Stone, who as a result of being publicly shamed online became &#8216;racked by PTSD, depression and insomnia&#8217;.[5]<\/p>\n<p>Twitter has &#8216;given a megaphone to people who enjoy shouting&#8217; [3] but this megaphone has also been given to businesses and corporations, who don&#8217;t feel the same effects of shame. It would be harmful for businesses to avoid social media altogether, as I explained\u00a0in the introduction, but they tread a thin line between ethical and unethical when hijacking hashtags.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>[1] Team Caffeine, &#8217;10 Remarkable Twitter Statistics for 2015&#8242;, <a href=\"http:\/\/lorirtaylor.com\/twitter-statistics-2015\/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http:\/\/lorirtaylor.com\/twitter-statistics-2015\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>[2] Nat Ives and Rupal Parekh, &#8216;Marketers Jump on Super Bowl Blackout with Real-Time Twitter Campaigns&#8217;, <a href=\"http:\/\/adage.com\/article\/special-report-super-bowl\/marketers-jump-super-bowl-blackout-twitter\/239575\/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http:\/\/adage.com\/article\/special-report-super-bowl\/marketers-jump-super-bowl-blackout-twitter\/239575\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>[3] &#8216;Twitter Abuse: Easy on the Messenger&#8217;, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2014\/jan\/24\/twitter-abuse-abusive-tweets-editorial?CMP=twt_gu\" rel=\"nofollow\">http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2014\/jan\/24\/twitter-abuse-abusive-tweets-editorial?CMP=twt_gu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>[4] &#8216;Shame with Jon Ronson&#8217;, <em>BBC<\/em>,\u00a0http:\/\/t.co\/CExQzd2BOI<\/p>\n<p>[5] Jon Ronson, &#8216;How One Stupid Tweet Blew Up Justine Sacco&#8217;s Life&#8217;,\u00a0http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2015\/02\/15\/magazine\/how-one-stupid-tweet-ruined-justine-saccos-life.html<\/p>\n<p><strong>[383 words, excluding quotes and references]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>  <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/gocomments\/sarahkyle27.wordpress.com\/119\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/comments\/sarahkyle27.wordpress.com\/119\/\" \/><\/a> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/pixel.wp.com\/b.gif?host=sarahkyle27.wordpress.com&#038;blog=70254599&#038;%23038;post=119&#038;%23038;subd=sarahkyle27&#038;%23038;ref=&#038;%23038;feed=1\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Social media is a great tool for businesses. &nbsp;Not only can they communicate with customers on an accessible (and increasingly popular) platform, but they can promote products and services to a massive audience &ndash; Twitter alone has&nbsp;over 270 million active users.[1] When it comes to advertising, Twitter is also key to a successful campaign. &nbsp;There&rsquo;s [&hellip;]<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/pixel.wp.com\/b.gif?host=sarahkyle27.wordpress.com&amp;blog=70254599&amp;post=119&amp;subd=sarahkyle27&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\"><!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":97367,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1031152],"tags":[264216],"class_list":["post-1069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-topic-4-2015","tag-uosm2008","column","threecol"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1069","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/97367"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1069"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1069\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1070,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1069\/revisions\/1070"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1069"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1069"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.soton.ac.uk\/uosm2008-2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1069"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}