1.

0 INTRODUCTION

According to Dictionary.com (2020), social media is a websites and other online means of
communication that are used by large groups of people to share information and to develop
social and professional contacts. It is a countless array of Internet based tools and platforms
that increase and enhance the sharing of information. This latest medium of media makes the
sharing of text, images, audio, video and information more and more fluid among Internet users.
Media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Wechat and Linkedin have built online
communities where users can share as much or as little personal information as they want with
other members. In line with the exponential growth of technology, social media has become a
very important means of contact in human life.

Today, social media is of concern not only to regular Internet users, but also to enterprise
users. It also becomes an information agency where various information and statistics are
displayed and exchanged. Every individual can receive and exchange information easily
because almost everyone has their own social media account. Users typically access social
media services through web-based desktop and laptop applications, or download services that
deliver social media features to their mobile devices. Social media has become one of the
phenomena that has changed the interaction and communication of individuals around the
world. With the availability of technology and social media, everything will be faster and easier.
This has transformed the way of life of the society, where information can now be obtained
easily and without limitations. This essay will discuss about social media which also serves as
information agencies to communities.
2.0 HISTORY OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Generally, the earliest methods of communicating across great distances used written
correspondence delivered by hand from one person to another. Started in 1792, the first
information was transmitted and received remotely using the telegraph system. However, at that
time the usage of telegraph was limited to short messages only. It is not able to send and
receive a lot of information at a time due to technical facilities that have not yet developed.
Subsequently, by 1865, a pneumatic post was created which allowed for faster communication
speeds. This pneumatic post was created using an underground pressurized air tube to carry
information from one place to another. It also still remains to this day which may still be seen in
supermarkets or banks. During the 1800’s, phone phreaking, the term used to check the
telephone network, begins. This is because telephones and radios were invented in 1890 and
1891. The development of these two allowed society to communicate and exchange knowledge
at a distance.

Then, by 1960, there was email which was initially a way to exchange messages and
information from one computer to another. The invention of the first computer actually existed
around the 1940s. The existence of these emails actually allows recipients to access their email
at any time but emails can only be sent and received when both computer are online. In 1969,
Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET), produced by the Department for
Advance Research Projects (ARPA), a United State government department has been created.
ARPANET was the early network of time-sharing computers that formed the basis of the
Internet. In the same year, well-known scientist and engineers have developed the Internet as a
network that can transmit and receive information easily. With the advent of the Internet,
information can be easily disseminated without borders.

Next, social media was further developed in the 1970s, when the bulletin board system
was known as the main communication tool. Bulletin board system is considered as the first
platform to allow Internet users to communicate with each other. However, users would have to
use a dial-up connection and only one could access the bulletin boards system at a time. At the
beginning of its creation, it also has no colour or graphics and its use is only for uploading and
download software, read news or exchange messages with others. In the meantime, a new
system was developed in the same year, known as Usenet. There are variations between these
two platforms where Usenet allows users to post articles or news to new group.

By the 1988, the first Internet Relay Chats were introduced. This system allows users to
share links and files. Internet Relay Chats also referred as Internet text messages. The main
purpose of the creation of this system is for group communication but it also enables private
chats and data sharing between two users. Then, the first modern social network, Six Degrees
was founded in1997. This platform allowed users to create profiles and become friends with
other users. Among other similar sites like Asian Avenue, BlackPlanet, Myspace, Facebook and
Twitter. In addition, blogging services such as Blogger and Epinions were created. Blogger
refers to a platform where writers or groups of writers express their opinion on an individual
topic while Epinions is a website where people can review products. In 2000, more social media
sites appreared, such as Photobucket and Flicker, which allowed online photo sharing. By 2006,
Youtube has also appeared. It is a social network that is still famous and used to this day. It
provides convenience to the community when millions of people can discover, watch and share
originally-created videos. Until now, there are many more modern and sophisticated social sites
have existed in line with the evolving development of technology. Social media also allows
users to connect without limitations compared to previous years and information can now be
widely disseminated due to the emergence of various new platforms.

https://smallbiztrends.com/2013/05/the-complete-history-of-social-media-infographic.html
https://online.maryville.edu/blog/evolution-social-media/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259528201_Social_Media_Past_Present_and_Future
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/social-media