Social Media is supposedly bringing with it an onset of generational content creators and participators.** Are we sure about that?**
It seems the mass, "old" media is recently concerned with the changes in how youth consume and create media. The stats are down on both sides. Teens read books less, and[ write poorly.](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/03/education/03cndwriting. html?em&ex=1207454400&en=a866a90118b1f389&ei=5087%0A) But maybe part of the problem is the mass conception of what "creating" and "consuming" means.** Organizations, businesses, and schools are not facilitating, guiding, or measuring Social Media consumption or creation.** This is a problem. The advent of Web 2.0 and Social Media, has made it critical to incorporate the web and social media into organizational ethos.
Considering Social Media
Pew Internet and American Life recently released a report stating, "** Teens write a lot, but they do not think of their emails, instant and text messages as writing.** This disconnect matters because teens believe good writing is an essential skill for success...
So teens are creating, but is the significance of their creations decreasing? Another critical point Pew addresses is the difference betweeninstructiveandnon-instructive creation. Instructive creation is when a teacher tells you to write an essay, or your boss tells you to create a two page brochure. Non instructive creation comes from your own initiative and vision. It is internally motivated. However, they found 92% of Teens write instructively vs 32% who write non-instructively. I would argue this is because of a lack of understanding on the part of schools on how to better facilitate and guiding Social Media creation and participation.
I would define create as "producing something through imaginative, or artistic effort. So, even a video remix on youtube, or putting a caption on a photo- can be considered creating.** Leaders and policy makers need to get with the program and figure out how to guide these efforts.**
Creating Vs Consuming in Social Media
** So what is consuming**? You know what I am talking about. YouTube, Blogs, Pictures, RSS Feeds, Wikipedia, Flickr, even Email. For some reason, humans are easily compelled to consume information than they are to create it. Why do we always want to revert back to mindlessly checking email or RSS readers? ** And creating**? Blogging, commenting, sending a message on Facebook, posting a photo on Flickr, Tweeting, etc anything that produces something unique and of substance.
** Finally- What is your Consumption to Creation Ratio?**
One of the things I try to keep in context is myconsuming vs creating ratio. I definitely consume information much more than I create it. So, how do we increase creative output? Take a look at your daily routine, how much of it is spent creating vs consuming? Are your creations a priority? Do they bring you enjoyment, or do they just move toward a goal that you have not re-evaluated in a long time?
You shouldn't feel guilty for commenting a blog post. Go ahead. You are creating....