@Mashable: What the #*#&^% is Social Media?!?!

For those who haven’t seen it yet, I would really like to share this presentation with you. As an avid user of social media, I often am asked how to really comprehend all that this term encompasses. At first, my basic answer is a fumble of words that generally synthesizes to an answer indicating that we’re still trying to figure it out. Now, my response is that Social Media is a new tool to engage audiences and keep the conversations going. Tools like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Friendster, and the newly released Gist are ways to keep track of the ever-changing trends in social media, allowing more users to connect.

What the F**K is Social Media: One Year Later

View more documents from Marta Kagan.

Marta Kagan produced “What the $%*& is Social Media” a year ago as a response to questioning of the impact of these online tools. With the trends changing so dramatically in a year, Kagan provided an update in this sequel. What I love about it is that it ultimately underscores the power of this medium and the potential to harness its energy for the next two minutes.

What it doesn’t address, however, is the future. I know that we are not prophets and have no real way of predicting what will happen. But the future of public relations also hangs in the balance. Many corporations, non-profit organizations, and even public relations firms are hiring social media strategist positions in an effort to bring these ideas to their clients. In my opinion, public relations professionals have done a good job of using social media tools to their advantage to further the mission of true public relations. But, how will that change in the next year? Five years? What are your thoughts?