Social media might be the biggest invention of the last few decades, with one small communication and photo posting websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, now forming some of the biggest corporate conglomerates on the entire planet, with customer bases in billions each.
But what is it about social media that made it so popular, and when exactly did the term social media actually come to fruition? What was the first social media site?
The evolution of social media, from its humble beginnings to the world-dominating tech force that it is now is an interesting story, that will be covered from start to end below.
Social Media Before Social Media
When examining what social media really is, it is fair to say that the entire idea is really just a method of humans communicating and connecting with one another, in a remote setting. So the real history of social media can be traced back to the first ever long-distance form of communication right?
In that case, social media can be attributed all the way back to before the 1900s when the telegraph (ironically the name of a social media site today) was invented back in the mid-1700s. People sending pigeons with letters and sending posts via the train systems can all be considered the earliest forms of social media.
Social Media In The 20th Century
With the advent of technology and the unprecedented growth that the tech industry has experienced since its inception, it is easy to see why and understand the explosion of social media popularity. Technology has rapidly changed in the 20th century after the first ever supercomputers were built in the late 1940s.
Then came the birth of the internet a mere 20 or so years later, and people started connecting via forums and chatrooms before any real social media sites were starting to become popular. Email threads and popular meme sharing via mass texts and chat rooms to discuss interests were the first real form of modern-day social media as we know it.
Smart Devices
Then came the mobile smartphone, phones with high-quality cameras, and other mobile devices that could easily connect to the internet and do everything that a supercomputer could do – from emailing to playing keno online real money games.
People can now carry all of their friends and family with them in their pocket, communicate with anyone from around the world with the click of a button, and also share exactly what they’re doing at any time with anyone. Communication is the core of human life and technology and the introduction of the smart phone has allowed mass communication on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to absolutely flourish.
Where To Next?
It is difficult to predict what the future holds for social media and technology in general because of the sheer pace of evolution in the industry. Advances in virtual and augmented reality, the introduction of the Metaverse and the acceleration of AI technology gives a good indication that we’re close to the next step of the social media evolution.
