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Modern Internet is Created
Although in development throughout the 60's and 70's, the Internet was formally created for cross-computer communication in the early 80's. Without the Internet, social media would not exist. -
SixDegrees.com: the First Social Media Site
The first true social media site where you could create a profile, establish a list of connections, and message others. The site had around 1 million users before it shut down in 2000. -
Hot or Not: the Grandfather of Dating Apps?
Hot or Not allowed for users to post photos of themselves with the gimmick that others could comment on how hot (or not) they were. It is said to inspire the creators of Facebook and Youtube and was at one point revived as a gameshow in 2014. -
Friendster
A site centered around meeting friends you had in common with others, this site didn't last long due to an unexpected popularity spike that the developers couldn't keep up with. While short-lived, Friendster introduced status updates that can display how you are feeling. -
Myspace: Social Media's First Icon
Known as "a place for friends", Myspace soon became the reigning champ in the social media world due to its "hip" factor with ultra-customizable profiles and a public profile system that anyone could interact with. -
Facebook is Born
The "Hot or Not for Harvard", Facebook (originally Facesmash) was designed to be a niche social media site for university students. -
The First Youtube Video
As Facebook, Flickr, and Reddit came into play during 2005, Youtube also joined the scene with a unique premise: video sharing! The first video, "Me at the zoo", was released on the platform and now has over millions of views. -
Twitter Hatches
Originally known as Twttr, this site was intended to be a social messaging site that could rival texting. Things have changed drastically since the sites first days, notably the 140 character limit, but it is still incredibly popular as it was back then. -
LinkedIn Joins the Party
LinkedIn, a site known as "Myspace for adults, helped to connect people to potential jobs and employers. It was a very popular and profitable site. -
Tumblr and the Birth of the Microblog
Tumblr was wildly popular amongst fandoms and creatives for its unique curation features: video sharing, blog posts, photos, and the ability to interact with follows using an "ask" button. -
The First Hashtag, #yay!
Twitter introduced the hashtag to help organize tweets. Now, hashtags are a great way to categorize content, bring awareness to issues, and explain how you're feeling. -
The First Iphone is Released
Although archaic by today's standards, the first Iphone was a HUGE breakthrough in both technology and social media. Through the use of "apps", people could access their favorite sites with the click of a button whuch quickly made this phone a household name. -
Weibo: Social Media is Worldwide
Weibo was a microblogging site that was launched after the ban against Twitter and Facebook. Weibo was a hybrid of these two lost media platforms and became incredibly popular in China. -
Grindr: LGBT+ Centric Social Media
Grindr, while a dating app, was revolutionary in providing a safe space for LGBT+ men to message and meet up with one another. -
Emojis Enter the Scene ✨
Although introduced in the mid-2000s, Unicode recognized these iconic pictures as an official "language" and allowed them to be used internationally across many channels of media. Since then, emojis have been in millions of social media posts to display a user's emotions, interests, or even what they look like! -
Instagram Incoming!
Instagram's unique premise was the ability to add (albeit campy) filters to your photos. Instagram is still popular today, and millions of photos are shared to the site. -
Pinterest: Put a Pin in it!
Pinterest, similar to Tumblr, offered content curation. However, Pinterest offers simple organization for one's pins and seems to lack any sort of user-to-user interaction, making it a very calm site. -
Snapchat Spooks the Competition
Snapchat gave users the ability to post images that won't last forever, as well as having a unique chatting feature ("streaks") that turned the simple act of messaging friends into a fun game. This app quickly became popular amongst teens and is still a formidable foe to Instagram and Twitter. -
Google+... Tries to Join the Party
Introduced as Google's answer to sites such as Facebook, Google+ tried to differentiate itself from other sites by introducing "circles" of friends that users can interact with. Unsurprisingly, the site did not gain traction and was soon shut down due to its lack of uniqueness. -
Facebook Celebrates One Billion Users
This milestone cemented Facebook as a historic site. -
#BlackLivesMatter Hashtag created
After the death of Trayvon Martin, this hashtag was used to spread awareness and organize protesters to take to the streets against racism and police brutality. This hashtag inspired other movements and showed the power social media has to do change the world for the better. -
Vine Sprouts into the Limelight
A short-form, yet highly addictive, video sharing app, Vine created many viral creators and trends. Although it is long gone, it paved the way for TikTok. -
Meerkat, Periscope: Streaming Begins
Meerkat, and Twitter's Periscope, allowed for users to stream videos and share them with others. While Meerkat no longer exists, and Periscope has merged with Twitter, streaming is an incredibly popular feature of social media sites. -
Discord Drops
Originally designed for gamers, many flocked to Discord for its server creation, video chatting features, and unique messaging system. -
The Power of Social Media and Fake News
The Trump vs Clinton election proved just how powerful, and dangerous, social media can be in regards to the political process. Falsified posts seemed to have influenced the election and the public's way of thinking, which would soon spread like wildfire circa 2020. -
#MeToo Makes Strides
Alyssa Milano used this soon-to-be-viral hashtag to bring awareness to sexual assault and harassment. This hashtag united many and gave them the confidence to speak out against their abusers. -
TikTok Releases
A product of Vine, TikTok had similar features and premise for sharing short form videos. This app became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic and is still dominating the social media sphere. -
Parler: Free Speech and Social Media
An alternative to the censorship on Twitter, Parler houses many conservative politicians because of its promises of free speech and unbiased moderation. -
Jan 6th: Is Social Media the Bad Guy?
As the events of Jan 6th unfolded, many participants streamed and photographed their actions with glee. Democrats took swift action to address the rising alt-right influence, poor media literacy, and censorship rules present in social media. -
Should Billionaires Buy Social Platforms?
Twitter transferred ownership to Elon Musk for 44 million, however many debated the consequences of a billionaire owning a public asset such as social media, as well as discussing Elon's political stances and how they will affect the platform.