This chapter proposes and discusses the hypothesis that the blogosphere is a relatively well-developed and independent social media communication tool used by millennials. The first part of the study concentrates on the theoretical aspects of social media communication as presented in the literature, and the way blogs and the whole blogosphere function. The communicational and social profile of Generation Y is presented as it is this cohort that constitutes the major portion of the Polish blogging community. The prevailing trends in the Polish blogosphere are discussed, following a desk research into reports and professional studies. Moreover, some comments and findings are presented regarding an experiment conducted by the authors in which some representatives of younger millennials ran personal, non-profit blogs on a subject of their choice.
TopPolish Blogosphere Profile And Creating Communication Channels
In the broad range of online communication tools, social media are doubtless one of the most important ones. Due to their dynamic growth, the specific character, the scope of functionalities available through the services, and the continuous increase in the number of users, they have become an important communication channel. They demand continuous and careful attention, as well as quick adaptation to new circumstances, which is to say they entail creating new ways of surviving in an evolving and dynamic environment which is continuously discovered anew (Cross, 2011, pp. 3-4; Szewczyk, 2015, p. 120; Couldry, 2012).
The term ‘social media’ refers to using online and mobile technologies to transform communication into interactive dialogue. The media are used for social interaction in the form of an elaborate set of electronic (online) communication tools which go far beyond what we used to know as social communication (Allmer, 2015, pp. 44-45). Usually, social media are divided into several different categories: blogs and microblogs (Twitter, WordPress, Blogger), social networks (Facebook, LinkedIn, nk.pl, MySpace), content services (YouToube, Instagram, Pinterest), virtual games (World of Warcraft), virtual worlds (Second Life), and social bookmarking web services (delicious.com).