Why Is Social Media So Popular?
Social Media: Where Human Nature Meets Technology
Social media respond to one of the fundamental needs of human beings: to express oneself.
Expression temporally and logically precedes communication.1
Indeed, expression may not communicate any content, but rather expresses a situation, e.g., a state of mind.
In social media, expression finds an outlet in communication, albeit fragmented and anonymised.
Examples of temporal precedence: blushing, a cry of fear, spontaneous surprise. These are expressions of an immediate state, while communication is always mediated.↩