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Diffusion of Innovation

Using the Com Tech Timeline was an innovative and interactive way to understand and further discuss the evolution of communication technology. Though, we covered technology dating back to 3500 BC, we stopped once we touched on inventions from 2007. With the rapid advancement of technology in the past 15 years, we could easily develop an entire timeline dedicated to communication technology from 2007-2020.

One of the most popular forms of communication technology that has emerged in the past ten years are social media platforms. With a few clicks, social media platforms have made it remarkably easy to share photos, videos, "tweets", and endless information with people across the world. I think the use of social media has caught on as a commonly used form of communication technology, because it allows people to connect effortlessly, no matter the time or the place.

I would say that in the past ten years, Instagram has gained an enormous amount of popularity amongst all generations. Children, teenagers, adults, grandparents, celebrities, companies, and even people's pets are connecting online everyday. Instagram gives users access to sharing photos, videos, stories, and more from the touch of their fingertips. Not only this, but Instagram now offers access to "IGTV" and a popular page, displaying travel pages, recipes, fashion tips, sports updates, and genuinely anything else that people are interested in.

Instagram definitely caught on with the crowd late, but now reigns above other platforms. Celebrities and influencers jumped on the bandwagon, seeing it as an opportunity to promote their brand and interact with fans and followers. What better way to sell your product than to promote it using live videos, posting photos, and buying ads that will appear in peoples's daily feeds. Another reason I think that Instagram has become so popular, is because the average person craves to know what everyone else is doing. Right now, we are stuck at home because of the Coronavirus, but never fear, social media is here! Instagram helps us keep up with the trends, our friends and family, and our favorite celebrities.

One of the downsides of the popularity and rise of social media as a communication technology, is the lack of face to face interaction that we are starting to see. People have become so consumed in what other people are doing, that they forget to put their screen down to interact and converse with the people around them. I truly do not think that social media is going anywhere, but we can all be cautious of our screen time and oversharing.

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