Written by Sarah Kyle and Gabrielle Pruitt
n an effort to discuss the impact of social media on modern life and culture, students are hosting the Brave New Media Conference, a one-day study of social media and its effects, on Saturday.The conference — sponsored by HUmanity, Harding University’s chapter of the national Roosevelt Institute, and the College of Communication — is open to all and free of charge.Beginning at 10 a.m. in Cone Chapel on Saturday, the Brave New Media Conference will address social media’s relationship with politics, humanitarian aid, education and more through three keynote speakers, with three classroom facilitators leading breakout sessions in Heritage 209, 210 and the Liberty Room.Speakers include 2002 Harding graduate Casey Neese, Heifer International’s social network marketing manager, network engineer Keith Crawford and 2007 Harding graduate Alex Cone, the online branding manager for the New York City Charter School Center.Harding political science professor Mark Elrod, Pulaski Technical College adjunct professor Ian Thomas and University of Central Arkansas associate professor and associate dean of the Honors College Donna Bowman will serve as classroom facilitators.Senior Alan Elrod, creator and overall director, said he believes discussing the impact of social media on everything from pop culture to politics is important to promote growth in today’s changing world.”Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms are already casting their shadows on the world we live in,” Elrod said.”When we talk about the revolutionary nature of social media, we’re not alluding only to it’s potential to affect political change; social media is so embedded in our daily lives that it’s reshaping every landscape.”Assistant professor of communication Jim Miller said the effects of social media have been most evident in the recent civil uprisings of the Middle East.”We’ve all seen recently in the Middle East how social media can empower the oppressed and expose corruption,” Miller said. “Social media can be powerful tools for good [and have] permeated every aspect of our lives.”Miller said he believes Brave New Media applies specifically to Harding students who wish to use every means possible to help the helpless.”As Christians, we’re called to use every talent and resource with which we’ve been blessed to serve God and our fellow man,”Miller said.”This conference addresses how we might do that through social media.”Elrod said that while the term social media may seem intimidating to some, the purpose of Brave New Media is to take the daily conversations and comments made on Facebook and Twitter and teach students how to use their online experience to influence greater issues.”If they think it’s over their head, they’re going to find out pretty quickly that it’s not,” Elrod said. “Whether they realize it or not, every college student has a background in social media, whether it’s on Twitter or Facebook.”Miller said he feels confident that the conference’s presentations will inspire individuals to become involved in social media efforts that are actively changing lives, such as Heifer International.With that inspiration, many new ideas may also be generated to improve the global community, Miller added.”When you bring creative people together to discuss important issues, big ideas are going to be dreamed up,” Miller said.For more information, visit the Brave New Media Facebook page, follow @ BraveNewMedia1 on Twitter or visit www.bravenewmediaconf.wordpress.com.
