The role of memes in the construction of Facebook personae

Abstract

This research is based on the assumption that social media sites -such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube -have changed the way in which memes (culturally transmitted ideas) are transmitted or spread. It is argued that social media have provided the most fertile environment for the replication of memes to date. The social networking site Facebook is the main social media example used throughout the research. The way in which Facebook is represented in film, as well as the ways in which the offline lives of the characters are affected by their social media profiles, specifically as depicted in the film Catfish (Joost and Schulman 2010) are analysed. Lastly, it is argued that one can construct an entirely new persona, or merely experiment with different aspects of who you are, on social media sites. This online persona can be influenced by the memes one chooses to spread online. Naturally, all memes carry connotations, values and judgements. These memes collate with one"s profile and, thus, the connotations attached to the memes one shares are then associated with one"s online persona/profile. It is found that although a social networking user tries to portray him/herself in an idealised manner, these memetic connotations give a true impression of his/her offline persona. As a result, there is not much difference between the user"s online and offline personae.

The Revolution of Facebook: Political Education on Social Media through Nonformal Andragogical Communities of Practice

“…Dobrowsky (2012) has researched identity construction through "…spaces of communication, in which individuals can work on their identity in processes of interaction" (p. 91), allowing the sampling of different identities which was previously much more limited in history. Du Preez and Lombard (2014) contend that while memes are part of identity construction, they are also part of identity display as they reveal true impressions of the user's offline persona. Casteltrione (2014) has proposed that Facebook can decrease the risk of political fragmentation and polarization, and elsewhere that members pre-existing levels of political activity reflect their mobilization efforts on Facebook (Casteltrione, 2016).…”

“…Hoadley argues that participants "…need to have a space in which it is legitimate to be on the periphery…" (p. 291). Rather than taking a class in a college or university or purchasing a book, members of a Facebook group can dip their proverbial toes in the water, which allows the educational process to take the time the individual needs to approach discovery in learning, and also sample different identities (Dobrowsky, 2012;Du Preez & Lombard, 2014).…”

Humour as discursive practice in Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election online campaign discourse

“…According to this popular notion, an Internet meme may spread in its original form, but it often also spawns user-created derivatives. (p. 362) Du Preez and Lombard (2014) observe that any Internet user can create a meme on a meme-generating site. Memes created on such a site are usually altered slightly, but are still traceable to the meme family.…”

“…Du Preez and Lombard (2014) emphasise social media effect on the proliferation of memes in the Internet age, stating that social media sites -such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube -have changed the way in which memes are transmitted or spread. It is argued that social media have provided the most fertile environment for the replication of memes to date.…”

“…Such an interactional theory of humour goes beyond a purely pragmatic description of jokes and joking. Du Preez and Lombard (2014) argue that all memes carry connotations, values and judgements. Shifman et al (2007) argue that the increasing popularity of new forms of Internet-based humour has raised questions about the significance of humour in campaigning and whether online humour can be used as means of stimulating political engagement.…”