Profile Lab p.2
This week in my Journalism class, I was tasked with redirecting my previous profile picture analyses onto three of my own pictures. So... let’s begin!
TikTok
On my TikTok page, my profile is dedicated to me just having fun. I selected this beautiful photo of Nene Leeks because I think she is representative of my whimsical outlook on life. To those who recognize her, I wanted to convey a message that I aspire to be just like my favorite celebrity. This is conveyed very directly because she is the focus of the photo. Unlike the other two profile pictures I will be discussing today, this one is the only photo that does not have me in the picture. I think if I were trying to manage my TikTok fame, I would probably have to change my profile to my face, or something easier to associate with myself. My only issue in this would be something we discussed in the previous part of this lab, which is the more commonly accepted public scrutiny of women’s profile photos.
For me, my main page on Instagram is for keeping up with friends, family, events, and more pain activity. I do not post on this account; I chose my profile picture because it needs to be a good representation of who I am. In this photo, the main message is that I am a young woman with great fashion taste, pride in her city, and hatred for the president — all the basics to me! The elements that are important to get this message across are my outfit, my city in the background, and my pose along with an “F Trump” flag. This is probably the most personal of my pictures compared to those on other sites because it is meant for those closest to me in my real life. This feels relatively normal to me because the different sites I use are meant to “allow individuals to present themselves, articulate their social networks, and establish or maintain connections with others” (Ellison 2007). If I wanted to gain better social capital on the app, maybe I would shy away from the political content, but that is simply none of my interest.
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My LinkedIn profile is probably the one that differs most from who I am in real life. As much as I understand that it may be a bit bland and misrepresentative of my fun, outgoing personality, it helps me convey my professionalism through my neat appearance and simple background. This ties into one of this week’s lessons that taught us about the significance LinkedIn has in today’s corporate world, claiming that “Social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter make it easier for people to maintain or extend their social capital” (Utz 2015). I think using this information would help me gain better leverage on this app by keeping my professional yet approachable appearance going.
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