As big of a social networker as I am, I can openly admit I was not one among the first to be on board (no pun intended) with the latest social media platform, Pinterest. For those who are unaware of Pinterest, it can best be defined as a "virtual pinboard" or an online bulletin board. It is a way for people to upload, or what Pinterest refers to as "pin" things of personal interest that can be organized and shared with others. Last week, CNN so happened to be on my TV and one of the reports was on the Pinterest phenomenon. The special segment was called "The Politics of Pinterest", which talked about the growing popularity of Pinterest and how it is currently the new "hottest" social media outlet there. According to the segment, Pinterest's popularity has increased by an outstanding 145% from the beginning of this year!! That is insane!! After watching this news report, I immediately had to check Pinterest out for myself and see what the hype is all about. So I made an account and began pinning. After playing around with it, I can see why so many people are obsessed and addicted to Pinterest. It is an endless supply of pictures taken from friends and strangers that pertain to a wide variety of interest. I personally enjoy looking at the fashion and food pictures. There is most certainly a category fitting for each individual.
As I spent over an hour browsing and exploring Pinterest and creating my Pinboards, I was wondering what is the point to creating these boards? Yes there are so many cool findings out there, and it is becoming a common place for people with similar interest to interact with one another but why is there a need for such a thing? I cannot say I will never become addicted but as of now, I do not understand the significances of Pinterest. Going back to the CNN segment, the report mentions how Pinterest has been criticized as a "dwindling down of long form content." From blog post, to Twitter (which only has 140 characters), and now Pinterest where there are only pictures, what is this saying about our society?! Why is the new social media moving in this short content direction?! What are your thoughts about Pinterest and the way new media is being formatted!?
Here is the CNN clip to watch if you are interested!
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2012/02/23/pkg-sylvester-pinterest-politics.cnn
I have never thought as Pinterest as a "dwindling down of long form content" until reading your post. I can see where the point is coming from since Pinterest is dominated by images rather than text, but I think that is also why people are attracted to Pinterest. I think that Pinterest is more so focused on the individual user rather than focusing on interacting with others. For me personally, the things I pin are things I like and that I can use for future reference. Whether it is a pair of shoes I want to buy or a recipe to try, Pinterest allows me to keep track of new ideas in an organized way. I am very interested to see the role Pinterest will play in social media in the future.
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