Exploring Identities in Online Music Fandoms: How identities Formed in Online Fan Communities Affect Real Life Identities

This thesis set out to explore the identities formed by members of online fandom communities, and to determine the ways in which those identities affect their real life, offline identities. This qualitative study encountered elements related to stereo types of young women who are fans of mainstream pop music, and provided insight on their experiences through interviews with five long time boy band online fandom members. This study asked if fans prefer to keep their fandom identities internal or let them reflect outward, how one\u27s online identity affects or translates to their real life identity, and what experiences in the online fandom were the most impactful to the individual\u27s real life identity or led to new knowledge. It was revealed that online community platform is the place where fans gather to enjoy a similar passion, but it is the relationships and discussions held on the site between fans that truly affect an individual and their identity, rather than the more superficial elements of being in a fandom. Through fandom discourse, members found social support and solidarity with one another

Addressing the Bard: Learning Ideas

The Scottish Poetry Library has published a new, provocative and exciting anthology of Burns poems, launched in the Year of Homecoming and of Burns’s 250th anniversary. What makes this anthology different is that twelve contemporary poets have been asked to select one of Burns’s poems and to respond to it. The result is an eclectic collection with some unexpected choices and responses that enlighten, challenge and amuse us. All of the response poems provide insight into Burns’s original work and some may have a more direct resonance with modern readers. In addition to the book itself, these supporting resources are being provided on the Learning and Teaching Scotland website. The material has been developed by Liz Niven, poet, writer, and Scots-language educator, and Maureen Farrell, an English teacher and now teacher educator from the University of Glasgow

Transcendental Communication as A Form of Self-Healing in The Millennial Generation

Humans living in this world cannot be separated from life's problems and trials, which cause emotional wounds and trauma. A healing process or self-healing is needed to eliminate feelings of stress and even depression. Healing is a term used by the millennial generation today. Transcendental communication, where we communicate with God God through worship, can be a way of healing to relieve stress and depression for millennials. This research aims to determine the process of transcendental communication as a form of self-healing in the millennial generation. The research method used is a qualitative approach. Data collection techniques are FGD, observation, and in-depth interviews with informants/participants as primary data. Meanwhile, secondary data uses literature studies sourced from journals, e-books/books, and documents. This research shows that by worshiping and praying to Allah SWT, surrendering all life's problems to Him alone can make the heart and mind calm and clear

The Instrumental Role of Social Media as A Functional Means in The Development of Character Education

This research aims to determine the instrumental role of social media as a functional means of developing character education. The method used in this research was qualitative. Data collection techniques used in this research were literature studies and documentation. The data collected was then analyzed descriptively qualitatively. The results of this research indicated that the instrumental role of social media is a functional means of developing character education, which plays a role in shaping the character of students who are skilled in understanding information. In the context of character education, the ability to understand information is to shape the character of students who think critically. Another role of social media in the development of character education is to form honest, open, transparent and courageous characters. Character education learning that is built is to teach students to dare to convey the truth of an event through social media. Another role of social media is to shape the character of tolerance. To teach a tolerant character to students, the teacher can do this by inviting them to look for and watch social media that contains tolerance. The development of character education with social media can be done by asking students to spread tolerance through words through their respective accounts

The value of social search: Seeking collective personal experience in social Q&A

In this paper, we examine the value of social question‐answering (Q&A) services as a platform for social search. We present a quasi‐field study where we instructed 20 study participants to use a social Q&A service, Yahoo! Answers, for a period of one week, and interviewed them about their experience with Yahoo! Answers based on the questions (N=99) they posted to the site. The results indicate that participants turned to a social search system when they needed firsthand information, diverse perspectives, and others' value judgments. Participants also preferred social search systems over web search engines in situations where they could obtain tailored information, access original and non‐popular information, filter out information, and interact with real people. Various strategies that participants employed to ensure that their questions would be likely to be answered were also identified. This study contributes to the field of information science by investigating a social Q&A service using the framework of social search from the information seeker's perspective. The results have implications for developers and designers of social search systems.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/106937/1/14505001067_ftp.pd

New Religious Authority of Islamic Millennial: A Study of Rohis Community in Medan City

Teenagers, or today mostly known as millennial generation, is transition phase from the child to the adult category. They look for identity through various activities such as Rohis community. This research focuses on how Rohis community of Madrasah Aliyah Negeri (MAN) in Medan city determines religious authority. The study also discusses how this spiritual community organized the group, built the network strategy, strengthened solidarity, and constructed an Islamic identity. The object of research is Muslim millennial generations who are member of Rohis of Madrasah Aliyah Negeri. This study results in a fact that this group does not follow the conventional religious authority but populism. The culture of populism with gadget as part of the life style including social media applications has constructed the spiritual identity especially in choosing and sorting out religious teachings to practice. The religious authority shifted form conventional to a new determining power, such as to determine patterns, shapes, styles and ways of practicing Islamic teachings. Their religiosity suggests symbolic identities, such as dressing, religious rituals and Islamic jargon can recognize among teenagers in the public sphere. Referring to the revealed they can be identified as groups inclined to the "culture of Wahabism". Culture "New Wahabism" is appearing in a new form in strengthening the network of “da'wah” through social media

Role of Islam in promoting Happiness and decreasing Envy among social media users

In Pakistan out of 220 million people, youth’soccupy 30 % of the population. A large segment of these youths use social media extensivelyto reach out to others to engage in both public and private communication.Since youths are at the critical age of seeking autonomy, attaining value, respect, freedom, recognition and fame in society.  They may use social media to compare themselves with others leading to either positive feeling of emotional contentment, happiness or negative emotions of unhappiness and discontentment.The negative intensive pain in the heart or Qalb in Muslim perspective can only be reduced  when it is filled with the Noor and the love of Almighty Allah. The present paper aims to understand the dynamic role of Islam in creating and flourishing the intense feeling of happiness and contentment in one’s life. This article alsodiscusses the current emotional state of youths who indulge in comparing themselves in the digital world leading to feeling of envy and unhappiness and thereforeprovides suggestions for reconnecting with true source of happiness meaning spreading love of Almighty Allah in our hearts and being grateful for HIS endless bounties in order to attain eternal happiness. Key words:  Happiness, social comparison, envy, Qalb   References [i]Schumann C, Ejaz W, and Rochyadi-Reetz M, et al. International perspectives on information avoidance during the coronavirus pandemic: comparing media evaluations and media use in Pakistan, Germany, and Indonesia. Stud Community Media 2022; 11: 477–507. [Google Scholar] [Ref list] [ii]United Nations Development Programme.  (2017). National Human Development Report: Pakistan. New York. [iii]Al -Qur’ān, 13: 2

Learning through collaboration: video game wikis

The wiki, wherein community-spirited players meticulously document their gaming experiences for the benefit of others, from simple guides to complex theories and strategies, has become the de facto online reference medium for video game players. This study sought to examine how players learn from one another about the systems that underpin their favourite games and how they engaged with social media – wikis, in particular – to facilitate this collaborative learning. It is argued that in collating, synthesizing and disseminating the often complex behaviours observed in a modern video game, the wiki author is displaying academic proficiency in a non-academic field. Drawing on a series of interviews with gaming wiki contributors and users, the practices of those engaged in using gaming wikis are discussed, together with an account of the research methods used. In undertaking such research, a number of challenges and concerns were encountered: these, too, are described

Semiotic Analysis of Social Media Content in Promoting Local Wisdom in Cultural Awareness at Jati Ranggon Village, Bekasi

This research aims to determine the semiotic’s analysis of online media communication to improve tourism promotion of local wisdom in Bekasi Regency. The local wisdom of the community that was once carried out and preserved in decline is now beginning to shift and replaced by the influence of modern culture. This type of local wisdom is what still remains today, especially in the communities of the Betawi. Meanwhile, the people of Kranggan Village, are still maintaining strong and preserving cultural life and customs that are closely related to Sundanese tradition. They have a tradition that has been kept for generations. Based on the above description the study aims to obtain detailed and in-depth data from the Babarit tradition through Roland Barthes’ semiotic analysis in local wisdom such as the values contained in the babarit tradition through ethnigraphic studies, analyzing the relationship of symbolic, paradigmatic, syntagmatic signs and language, speech and culture. Social media helps tourist attractions in interacting with their potential customers. Social media has a great impact on people’s lives. Thus, it is very appropriate to promote tourism through content so that social media still has its function and purpose, has benefits in the life of every individual, it will help to form a good destination image, and increase the interest of tourists to visit. This research method has used a qualitative research paradigm, ethnography. Ethnography is a method used by researchers to study a social group through observation and active participation of the researchers themselves. Data collection techniques used in this research were literature review and participant observation, interviews, and documentation. The research instrument uses the results of interviews, while the observation guide is based on elements from Babarit. Keywords: local wisdom, cultural awareness, semiotic analysis, social media conten