Media Shy: The Perils of Bashfulness in the Digital Age, an Era of Speed, Satisfaction, and Spectacle

Abstract

Speed and satisfaction are central to today’s digital communication tools and online social environments. This article examines how new forms and habits of social communication in digital environments have over time compromised socially timid users as a result of algorithmic design and the commodification of users. An examination of the history of online social environments and their outgrowth, the consideration of social and cultural factors, and self-presentation theory, will be used to frame these arguments.