The Latent Sphere of the Network Society

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THE LATENT SPHERE OF THE NETWORK SOCIETY

By

JOANNE ISOBEL WHITE

B.A., Griffith University, Qld, Australia, 2005

Grad. Dip., Charles Sturt University, NSW, Australia, 2006

A thesis submitted to the

Faculty of the Graduate School of the

University of Colorado in partial fulfillment

of the requirement for the degree of

Masters of Mass Communication Research

School of Journalism and Mass Communication

2010


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This thesis entitled:

The Latent Sphere of the Network Society

Written by Joanne Isobel White

Has been approved for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication

_______________________________________________

Nabil Echchaibi, PhD.

_______________________________________________

Stewart Hoover, PhD.

_______________________________________________

David Slayden, PhD.

_______________________________________________

Leysia Palen, PhD.

Date____________________

The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we

Find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards

Of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline.

IRB Protocol Number # 0210.3


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White, Joanne Isobel (Masters in Mass Communication Research, School of Journalism and

Mass Communication)

The Latent Sphere of the Network Society

Thesis directed by Associate Professor Nabil Echchaibi

The intermingling of the online and offline spheres has seen a marked blurring and today IRL

embraces all forms of identity. Women and mothers in particular, have long struggled with

identity, and the rise in popularity of social media has provided them with a channel of

connection in ways never before encountered. The power of women in social media is unmet by

any other group. Companies seeking commercial benefit from this force of spending decision

makers are attempting to infiltrate the mom blogger environment.

This thesis considers a mom blogger event run by Nestle in September 2009, and the negative

reactions of the social media community, both towards the company and the bloggers who

attended. Issues of social capital, identity work and the latent sphere of community present

within the online realm are explored through a triangulated research methodology which

provides an insightful picture of online communities and the organization and politicization of

the space.


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CONTENTS

CHAPTER

I. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................1

II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE .............................................................4

Community and the internet ................................................................4

The strength of weak ties.....................................................................6

The Network Society and social capital ............................................12

Media and mom bloggers..................................................................14

III. BACKGROUND ......................................................................................17

The media became the message ........................................................20

Social Actors .....................................................................................24

Nestle...........................................................................................24

Mom bloggers .............................................................................27

Technology ........................................................................................31

Twitter .........................................................................................31

Syntax employed by Twitter users .....................................................32

The use of Hashtags on Twitter ........................................................33


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User account identifiers ..........................................................................34

Internet connectivity................................................................................34

IV. METHODOLOGY ...............................................................................................35

1. The Twitter stream ............................................................................372. The online questionnaire...................................................................413. Individual depth interviews and observations of long-form blogs....42

V. FINDINGS .....................................................................................................43

VI. FURTHER RESEARCH ......................................................................................77

Mom bloggers .........................................................................................78

Companies...............................................................................................78

Identity ....................................................................................................79

VII. CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................................79

REFERENCES........................88

APPENDIX

A. CODE BOOK WITH COMMENTS

FOR CONTENT ANALYSIS ..............................................................91


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B. COMPLETE REPORT FROM ONLINE

QUESTIONNAIRE ............................................................................93

C. QUESTION GUIDE USED IN

DEPTH INTERVIEWS ....................................................................107


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Introduction

The world of social media has evolved from single terminal access to forums and chat rooms to

dynamic interfaces like Twitter and Facebook which are accessible through computers and

mobile technologies. By utilizing these social media tools people are constantly reaching out,

broadcasting and seeking connection with others. What follows is a cumulative process whereby

one connection reinforces our desire to connect again, resulting in a continual reaching out to

others.

Subsequently, for many people the barriers between online and offline connections are

disappearing. During the last decade the term IRL (In Real Life) has gained popularity with both

mainstream media and scholars when defining the separation between who people are online and

who they are in the offline sphere. However the intermingling of the online and offline spheres

has seen a marked blurring and today IRL embraces all forms of identity. We flow from one

realm to the other and experience each within the context of the other to such an extent they have

become one.

The blurring of these two environments for identity work has had impact on how

relationships are built and maintained. Sociologists have determined that the presence of weak

ties (a sociographic theory coined by Mark Granovetter) are more plentiful than ever before.

There is another core characteristic resulting from this profusion of weak ties. The immediacy of

the contact these social media channels allow creates what I call a latent sphere of potential

community members to the user. On the one hand the user can rediscover feelings of connection

and depth of community they (and many scholars) may have thought was threatened (if not

already lost). On the other, the user is simultaneously actively creating new connections, with

each connection driven by attitudes, opinions and experiences of the individual that reaches out.


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These connections have real personal resonance rather than being created through more

traditional social structures and relying on factors such as geography or official membership of a

group.

Global uptake of internet-based computer-mediated communication (CMC) has risen

exponentially over the last five years. Not only has the internet changed the way we consume

media, buy goods and services and communicate with each other, it has also created an

environment in which users can discover and be a part of a breadth of societal involvement and

activism never before encountered.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore how weak ties are realized online, and how they

form what I call a latent sphere of community in what Manuel Castells has coined the Network

Society. In turn this thesis seeks to examine how these weak ties tighten when a thought or issue

of common interest enters the sphere. The premise of this latent sphere becomes even more

tangible when the offline actions of those involved in this tightening are demonstrated as part of

the online connection. This offline action further reinforces the pervasive nature of technologys

impact on society, and how in real life is no longer able to be identified separate from online

networks.

Literature investigating each of the contributing factors to the identification of the latent

sphere will be examined. Authors such as Wellman (2001; 2004), Rheingold (2002), and Albert,

Flournoy & LeBrasseur (2009) have examined the definition of community and how it exists

online. Exploration of social capital and its prominence in the Network Society are provided

through the work of Castells (2007) and Acevedo (2007). Discussion of the presence of weak

ties, phatic communion and an earlier idea of the latent sphere, through an observation oflatent


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tiesare provided by Wittel (2001), Miller (2008), Tracy (2002) and Haythornthwaite (2001).

The research includes identification of how identity is represented online as a plurality of self

rather than a two-dimensional broadcasting of a single idea is shown through treatment by

Cooper & Rowan (2009). Finally, literature discussing mothers and the development of their

own identity in the face of traditional media is identified through the work of Mattelart & Reader

(1982), while the work of Medved & Kirby (2005) is used to show how women have been

divided in modernity as they suffer value judgments over their decisions to work in and outside

the home, and in parenting decisions. These literature demonstrate how mothers in particular

have been particularly impacted and empowered by the rise in social media.

For the purpose of the exploration of the latent sphere, a case study will be used in which

the weak ties that are inherent in one online sphere, mom bloggers, were seen to tighten during a

discussion on social media (Twitter and blogs), over the actions of a multinational company and

the decision of some members of the mom blogger community to attend an all-expenses paid

promotional event held by the firm in late 2009.

The multinational company, Nestle, organized an all-expenses-paid promotional event for

a select group of people who were chosen based on the perceived influence they had through

their online public blog presence, held in California from September 30 to October 1, 2009.

Some of the attending bloggers decided to use the organizing hashtag, #NestleFamily, on Twitter

to talk about their involvement with the event. They also produced long-form blog posts

following the event.


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The actions of both Nestle and the attending bloggers came under scrutiny and the

general Twitter population interested in the #NestleFamily hashtag rose in number, with many

bloggers raising points of contention for discussion. At times the debate became heated.

Literature Review

Community and the internet

While traditional notions of community rely on readily identifiable frames such as geographic

location or a group of people who share a common interest, in todays network society, where

technology is not only prevalent but also pervasive, a fully rounded description of community

has become a term more difficult to quantify. Scholars beginning with pre-internet McLuhan

(1965) and moving to Web 1.0 theorists and Web 2.0 authors such as Wellman (1997), Albert,

Flournoy & LeBrasseur (2009) have discussed the relevance, actuality and definition of

community on the internet. There has been discussion over differences between community

online and offline. When the online structure of community differs from some scholars

unrealistic utopian notions of offline community, some other scholars fear this means community

is disappearing rather than simply restructuring or discovering a new form. These differences

have led to research which fails to appreciate the newer forms of community because it is created

from within a frame which reflects assumed representation. For example, Pew Internets research

on Online Communities intended to explore the breadth and depth of community online (2001,

p. 1), however the questions and content analysis in the research sought to identify communities

based on traditional ideas of shared passions, beliefs, hobbies and even location. It is not

surprising then, that some scholars use this type of research to identify a crisis in community,

(Evans, 2004, p. 2) instead of redefining the measures and values used to identify community


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existence. This thesis will investigate the character and community consciousness which is

represented online, and relate it to scholars earlier understanding in an attempt to explore a

redefinition of the idea of community in the Network Society.

Wellman (2001) says, It is becoming clear that the Internet is not destroying community

but is resonating with and extending the types of networked community (p. 2031). Additionally,

he states that computer networks principally support social networks, not groups. A group is

only one special type of a social network; one that is heavily interconnected and clearly bounded.

Much social organization no longer fits the group model (p.2031).

It is apparent that research needs to step back in order to focus on the essence of what

makes communities, and this invites us to determine the individual components that communities

are composed of. Concentration on the active involvement of the individual, rather than

identifying a community based on an idea centered on external attributes, is reflected by the

comments of Cassell and Tversky (2005) who draw from bodies of work by Rheingold, 1994;

Wellman, 2001; Wellman, Boase, & Chen, 2002 in their view:

Given the modern world in which we live, where easy and rapid transportation as well as

telephone lines and email can sustain relationships, it is more appropriate to think of a

community as a network of interpersonal ties that, like the isolate neighborhood

communities that existed previously, provide sociability, support, information, a sense of

belonging and social identity. (p. 5)

It has been said that identity as an individual relies on associations. It is both a collective as well

as individual undertaking which is only meaningful in a social environment (Stalder, 2006, p.

84), and that social environment is now being found online just as it is offline.


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Numerous scholars have focused research on the actions of individuals political action

through their involvement with the internet (for example, Castells, 2007; Rheingold,2002;

Albert, Flournoy, & LeBrasseur, 2009, and Evans, 2004), however the political realm reaches far

beyond the ballot box. Civic action in areas such as shared causes, non-profit organizations

and education, for example, have indirect consequences on overarching political standpoints

taken by individuals. While a minimum of research currently exists on social action within the

realm of social media, it remains a key aspect of the politicization of the web.

Strength of Weak Ties

Literature has discussed the strength of weak ties, particularly in relation to finding employment.

This literature has been based in traditional frames of considering how ties work in society. Most

of the literature focuses on offline ties, and that which looks at online ties assumes the operation

of ties works in the same way as offline ties (Haythornthwaite 2001). Influences such as socio-

economic status, education, etc have all been used to define differences for purposes of

comparison in the tangibility of weak ties, and focus of their effect has rested on work and

employment. However, as researchers moved to the online sphere, these conditions become less

relevant and thus it is difficult to find research that explores the effect of weak ties online. As

society expands and begins to truly integrate the offline with online through the pervasive nature

of social media, the lines between offline and online weak ties blur, and there is space to

examine how the two interact.

Some studies of computer mediated communication (CMC) performed before the

proliferation of socially focused media on the web concluded that CMC was less effective or

appropriate if exchanges were highly emotional, or if information being disseminated was


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complex (for example, Draft & Lengel, 1986; Fulk & Steinfield, 1990; and Kiesler and Sproull,

1992). This literature creates a rich environment for fear-mongering theories which relate a

thinning of community in society through their perceived concentration on meaningless

utterances otherwise known as phatic communion or small talk (Wittel, 2001; Tracy, 2002).

Using Wittel as a starting point, Miller (2008) states that ultimately the rapid adoption of online

social networks creates a phatic culture (p. 389). The pervasiveness of this phatic culture

extends across all of society, which appears to rely on connected presence and expands the

number of weak ties every individual has rather than retaining strong ties which are essential for

social cohesion. This focus on weak ties combined with phatic communion opportunities through

a minimal number of characters represented by technological tools such as Twitter, led to

conclusions by Miller that due to the overbearing direction of technology there was a danger that

the very fabric of community in society was doomed to lose intimacy and depth.

Contrasting the view of Miller, other literature has sought to find connection or similarity

between the online and offline sphere of social networks. Bernardo Huberman, Daniel Romero

and Fang Wu (2009) described online networks as similar to contacts in a personal phone book.

Some are contacted very regularly, but many are not. Further, these authors state that a lack of

regular contact does not directly indicate a lack of interest. Huberman, et al conclude that further

study is required to explore what the authors call a hidden social network which exists in this

online sphere. It is this hidden social networkthat this thesis will discover, and identify as

being a latent sphere of weak ties.

Additionally, Barry Wellman (2004) has stated that technologies themselves neither

make nor break communities. Rather, they create possibilities, opportunities, challenges, and

constraints for what people and organizations canand cannotdo (p. 25). In fact, says


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Wellman, there are indications that those who are highly involved in connection with others

through the internet are also just as frequently in-person contacts as those who rarely or never

use the internet.

In his original work, Granovetter (1973) described the difference between strong and

weak ties based on four general categories: time, emotional intensity, mutual confidence and

reciprocity. According to Granovetter, strong ties are determined and maintained through

relationships that include intimate or confidential information sharing, frequent and high levels

of emotional contact that over time are consistent from both parties in the tie. In contrast, he

describes a weak tie as one which does not feature frequent contact, high levels of emotional

and/or intimate personal content. General examples are close friends and family as

representations of strong ties, and work colleagues or distant relatives as examples of weak ties.

These characteristics have been relied on by scholars as general categories differentiating one tie

from the other (for example, Erickson and Yancy in Granovetter, 1983, p. 206). It is interesting

to consider what scholars consider makes a weak tie in the CMC sphere. According to

Haythornthwaite (2001), contacts which are strongly tied are likely to have similar attitudes,

background, experiences and access to resources (p. 4). However it could be argued that access

to resources (as distinct from access to the web) is quite a leveled playing field when considering

the vast realm of the internet. The author continues with an explanation that weak tie contacts

spend most of their time operating in different social circles and provide access to resources

outside the close social circle (p. 4). Arguably, we could state that without a shared offline

ongoing common experience (such as offline friendship), all social actors in the online sphere

fall into this category.


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Haythornthwaite extended her work to explain the existence of latent ties. These are

described as ties for which the connection is technically available, but not yet activated. (p. 4)

The author states that when activated, these latent ties become very weak ties. This particular

work from Haythornthwaite came from a time prior to the rise inpopularity of todays online

social network environments, and I assert this early indication of latent ties was an early

identification of what has progressed to become a latent sphere of weak ties which are far

stronger than Haythornthwaite thought at the time.

It is apparent that while much literature discusses the strength and action of weak ties,

particularly in the realm of the workplace and gaining employment (for example, Pickering and

King, 1995), in the Network Society, the unquestioned definitions of what constitute weak and

strong ties are problematic.

To question assumed norms of a term is not unusual. For example, in the Network

Society, the definition of a friend is difficult to determine, and can become so abstract that it

loses meaning altogether. Many social media technologies invite the friending and following

of others, without requiring any qualification of an offline relationship. (One notable exception

to this is the popular professional social network, LinkedIn, which requires connections to

proclaim their reason for connection with every person in their community network.)

Some individuals will refer to someone online as being a friend, however they may have

never actually met face to face. It is common to hear people discuss whether a friendship is real

or not when it is based upon online social media connectionseven though areas that would

indicate a strong tie such as intimate conversation, regular contact and high levels of emotion are

all present. It could be surprising to some that a concept as apparently obvious as friendship


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comes under scrutiny and discussion in the Network Society, however it is pertinent to re-

examine these long-held concepts and definitions when researching their definitions in this new

sphere. It is relevant to spend some time focusing on how users of online networks feel about

other users. While most users of online social networks do not appear to invest time in making

these definitions for themselves, as researchers of the field, it is necessary to question how users

define their relationships to each other.

Also problematic are the approaches taken by scholars to online communities in the

network society. It would appear that the traditional view of communities is that they are seen as

identified groups that are common to everyone. Scholars recognize that communities exist

online, but they fail to identify differences between how these communities form and are

identified. It is commonly assumed by scholars that online communities are structured and

created in the same way as offline communities, and their research reflects these assumptions,

even in the most recent work. Wellman and Gulia (1997) identify that high levels of

understanding and support are available in virtual communities (also see Feld, 1982; and

Marsden, 1983) and the Pew Internet Report has researched the number of people who are

joining existing online communities (Horrigan, 2010). Each of these studies identifies online

communities as being parallel entities to offline communities. They celebrate a newly

invigorated attitude of youth in particular, to becoming more socially active, identifying ways

teens appear to move online to form relationships with groups. Scholars in these studies have

identified a reduction in the joining of organized offline groups, however appreciate that online

there is a re-energized willingness for individuals to be members of communities. They refer to

the same joining a group as a traditional offline person would undertake, in which the user

goes online to join existing communities.


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However, more recent work has begun to identify differences between the structure and

creation of groups and communities in offline and online networks. Albert, Flournoy &

LeBrasseur (2009) have reflected on the connections of community networks in the online

sphere, and used Facebook as an example of how people in one network are able to

exponentially increase their realm of weak ties, purely through the simplicity of social media and

the power of online search in that sphere. The authors say these seemingly small nuances of

difference have an enormous impact on the empowerment of the individuals within the

communities, and also demonstrate the strength of the networks involved. The authors state,

The first decade of the 21

st

century will be the pivotal period for the New World Information

and Communication Order, when ordinary citizens in communities of all sizes will begin to

realize that they have the means to shape their future (p. 229).

Additionally, differences are beginning to be identified by scholars in how much more

intense impressions and emotions are in the online sphere compared to offline. Hancock and

Dunham's 2001 study of 80 participants compared their impression formation following a face-

to-face dyadic interaction compared with a text-based, synchronous computer-mediated

conversation. Results of the research demonstrated that the participants' impressions of each

other following the CMC interchange were less detailed, but more intense than the face-to-face

interaction. This research, focused on the individual rather than an assumed perception of their

communities leads us to question how intense the impressions are of each other in online sphere

communities, and how these are acted out when topics of passionate debate are raised.


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The Network Society and social capital

Manuel Castells postulated in 2007 that media have become the social space where power is

decided. Arguably, this assertion is no different a reality than has always been the case. While

acting as the fourth estate, media have also controlled messages to the extent that political

structures are decided within the realm of content produced by media. Today, anyone with

internet access who wants to make a public statement or create a public engagement can be a

content producer, and thus has a place in decisions of power. While democracy may be the aim

of progressive Western society, with all voices heard, the decisions of individuals in those

societies are not made without influence. In a traditional media model, influence of individuals

could be ascribed to messages that were disseminated through a unidirectional Lippmanesque

authoritative editorial process. In the social media model, social interactions such as

conversation, debate and discussions play a more influential determining factor. Key to this are

the relationships and credibility of social actors. In the online social media sphere where anyone

can truly question the authenticity and motivation of any other social actor, the democracy of the

space invites greater focus on questions of legitimacy which previously had been granted or

assumed, simply because they had been filtered by the media enterprise that disseminated the

message.

Credibility of the social actors in the online sphere relates specifically to the social capital

they control. While personally constructed, social capital is a measure of social cohesion

(Acevedo, 2007). There is no social capital without a network to reinforce and support it. Social

capital in a network is different to human capital, which relies on personal assets, education and

qualifications (Degenne and Forse, 1999). These authors state that weak and strong ties are both

related to social capital, framed around expectations and reciprocal obligations between


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individuals. Similar assertions by Acevedo (2007) state that factors such as participation, trust,

solidarity and reciprocity feature in identifying social capital. Informing these factors in the

online social media sphere, identity is no longer established and maintained through a single,

two-dimensional representation that is crafted and controlled by the broadcaster who uses

carefully prepared singular messages designed to resonate with the core of a target audience. The

unilateral environment of traditional media is not conducive to a plurality of identity expression.

In fact, in a traditional media model, inconsistency of message or appearance is instead seen as

being deceptive or confusing, and a risk to the social capital of the broadcaster.

However, gaining social capital in the online social media sphere relies on embracing a

three-dimensional expression of self. The dynamic of social media calls on individuals to have

two-way conversations with other users rather than broadcast single messages. It is within those

multi-user conversations that a more fully rounded representation of identity or self is shown.

There is less opportunity to create a crafted message or persona due to the immediacy of social

media conversations, and a user gains social capital within their community through

demonstrating a wider scope of interests and engagement than simply through broadcasting

unilateral messages. It has even been said by Cooper and Rowan in their book, The Plural Self

(2009), that "the notion of a unified self begins to stand out like a relic from a bygone era." An

individual's professional face is but one expression of an identity. That person is expected to also

have a social face, and a private face. The more controlled the expression of personality in social

media, the less authentic the person is seen to be - and the lower the possibility of social capital

within the sphere. As Abbas and Dervin say, "Researchers face the tricky fact that identity is

both a scientific concept (a researcher analyzes the construction of identities in discourse) and a

daily experience for every human being (I define who I am and I am defined by others whenever


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I interact)." People need to engage with each other (participate and reciprocate) to build social

capital within their community, and only when they do is trust and social capital built.

The challenge of presenting a unified self to society is one with which mothers have

struggled as they have sought identity in the paid workforce or tried to maintain social capital in

deciding to stay home to raise their families. Today mothers have many different roles, and

moving online appears to have given them an opportunity to reach out and connect with others

who face similar challenges, and are willing to share their multi-faceted day-to-day experiences

with others in quite detailed ways.

Media and Mom Bloggers

Mattelart and Reader (1982) have outlined the ways that mass media in the US have singled out

women as a primary target for mass media promotional messages, beginning with soap operas

and serials on radio and television. Advertising was such a prolific force that programming was

formed around it, instead of the other way around. Intertwined with commercial production of

content, advertising has been a constant presence in the forming of the female US media

experience. In turn the media experience has defined and guided the role of the US female,

fostering accepted norms of product purchases and their use, clothing choices, and parenting and

family behaviors.

For women, the challenges of life in our post-feminist society are ones which have never

before been as plentiful. Questions laced with condemnation face every mother over the choice

to stay-at-home or remain in the paid workforce. So, what do you do? has neverbefore held so

much judgment (Medved and Kirby, 2005, p. 437). It may not be surprising that many turn to the


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internet for support, encouragement and connection with other women of like minds. Online,

women are able to find areas of common concern and resonance (Compass Partners, 2009).

Not all mothers are the same, and nor are all parenting practices. In the offline world it is

very difficult to ascertain whether another mother shares similar beliefs or even takes the same

approach to parentinghowever, on social networks and blogs women are able to identify others

who share the same beliefs, practice and challenges, and they can reach out without fear of

recrimination. This freedom offers validation, support and friendship found through homophilous

networks, without judgment.

Beyond the resonance of friendship, women are also discovering a reinforcement of their

identity as professionals through involvement with the internet. Women have taken to blogging

in droves. In the US there are millions of women who blog, and the accomplishments and

education they have made in business enterprise are finding realization in the domestic sphere

(Compass Partners, 2009). Women who decide to leave the corporate world to raise families are

beginning to move online and build enterprises as mom bloggers (or alternatively,

mompreneurs) (for example, Druxman, 2010; Mendelsohn, 2010). Experience gained in

women's corporate roles is being brought home and shared with other women through tips and

tricks to build online sites that enable mothers to create and share content ranging from the most

basic diary through to established, branded businesses. We are seeing a bridge between the

corporate and stay-at-home choice being made real through communities of women using the

network of the internet to celebrate their own and other women's choices, lives and experience.

While Medved and Kirby identified this trait in the early stages of Web 1.0 with mothers

beginning to treat themselves as CEOs of their homes (p. 454), today in a Web 2.0 social media


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environment, women have created real businesses and established themselves as a corporate

product.

The revolution in the role of women through advances made by feminism have led to

changes in the portrayal of women in mainstream media. No longer do women find resonance in

once-popular matriarch characterizations such as those offered in shows such asLeave it to

Beaverin the 1950s and The Partridge Family in the 1970s. Instead we see current female role

models as independent, anti-domestic mothers such as Sex in the City's Miranda and each of the

Desperate Housewives. The women in these shows present dissatisfied, awkward or simply

borderline-insane women engaged with limited, traditional roles of mothering as opposed to

powerful independent women who use men for sexual gratification. It is apparent feminism has

no room or value for the powerful traditional aspects of motherhood.

These women reflect the dissonance experienced for the last 30 years of women

challenging each other through roles of working outside of the home rather than in the home.

Women continue to experience the backlash from other women, as defined by the reputable

feminist theorist, Susan Faludi, and raise the temperature of that battle with an internal conflict

over whether to work at home or outside the home. Aligned with this battle is the media

portrayal ofappropriate mothering. When mothers are successful, mass media celebrate their

unusual achievements. However, when tragedy strike a family, mass media reporting commonly

blames the mother. This appears to be the case, no matter whether the unusual achievements

were monumental celebrations such as Alison Hargreaves accomplishment of climbing Everest

in a solo effort without supplementary oxygen, followed by her fall from the medias graces

when she perished in a subsequent climb of K2 (Gilchrist, 2007); or if it is the personal story of

the tragic loss of a child where the mother is blamed for negligence or inappropriate behavior


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that is deemed to have led to the childs death, even though the behavior had either no

substantive evidence, or its relationship to the death is tenuous, at best (for example, Shepard,

2010; and King, 2010). It would appear that mothers have become an easy target for mass media.

In the democratizing developments of authorship offered in the media of the Network

Society, mothers could be the most interesting group experiencing change. Mothers are key

stakeholders in the revolution of media demonstrated by their widespread adoption of blogging

and other forms of social media. Women are taking the power of what is produced in mass media

from the hands of those who seek to subvert or question the validity of mothering, and are

instead using it to connect and find reassurance from other mothers. Often a lonely role made

more so because of the dichotomies presented in traditional media outlets which seek to pit

mothers who work outside the home against those who work at home, or those who choose to

raise their infants with artificial formula instead of breastfeeding, the new opportunities offered

to mothers through social networking have provided a new strength of identity which does not

rely on two-dimensional, shallow aspects of mothering. Instead, social media allows a depth of

communication and resonance which many mothers appear to find encouraging and supportive in

ways they do not find offline because of busy schedules, family and work demands, and lack of

time or energy to join traditional, offline groups.

Background

As social media tools and CMC have become more mainstream and accepted standards for

communication in western society, corporations have begun to infiltrate the online sphere,

attempting to find influence with consumers and leveraging these non-traditional, less expensive

CMC-based media formats in an attempt to sell their products and gain positive brand identities.


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One key market for these corporations is known as mom bloggers. Moms in the US are

responsible for more than 80 per cent of their familys expenditure decisions, totaling over $2

trillion each year. Moms are more likely to respond to word-of-mouth recommendations and

more frequently women are turning to the internet for advice and connection. As a result, mom

bloggers are considered influential within this market. Mom bloggers are also very active across

numerous social media tools. They may run their own blog, have a Twitter account, Facebook

page, podcast and even have their own web television shows. Some of the most popular mom

bloggers may find an audience across all these forms of social media. Far outstripping the

potential impact of any one traditional media format, these mom bloggers have a potential

audience which run into the tens of thousands and be primarily made up of other moms who

share a number of common key traits (for example, having a large family or working outside the

home). While still in the early stages of development, many companies are seeking alignments

with mom bloggers they believe are influential in an attempt to gain low-cost focused connection

with market niches traditional media cannot adequately address.

The Nestle promotional event considered in this study is an example of this. The

company invited a number of bloggers (predominantly moms but two dad bloggers were

included) to attend a two-day all expenses-paid event at its US headquarters in California from

September 30 to October 1, 2009.

The event was described by the company as a focus group opportunity for Nestle to hear

what the attending bloggers had to say about the Nestle Family brand as well as serving as an

introduction to the companys vast range of products. It is notable that a small number of invited

bloggers chose not to attend due to either identified conflicts of interest, the Nestle brand falling

outside the realm of their blog focus, and some due to their personal opposition to Nestles


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business and marketing practices which have been documented for over 30 years and which have

resulted in boycotts of the companys products. At least one blogger who attended the event was

informed of concerns about Nestle practices prior to the event, but still decided to attend.

The families of those who attended were sent packages of Omaha Steaks by Nestle while

the blogger was at the event. Additionally, the bloggers were reportedly provided with a

generous amount of free Nestle products during their time at the company and also received a

selection of products delivered to their homes following the event. They were also allowed to

purchase Nestle products from the Nestle Factory Store during their time at the event, and a

number of attendees tweeted about doing this.

While the mom bloggers were at the event they were given free samples, taken on tours

of the Nestle factory and attended presentations made by a number of staff. Many of the

attendees were using Twitter to identify and celebrate their location and the activities they were

experiencing over the weekend. Using the hashtag #NestleFamily, the tweets were generally very

positive towards Nestle and its products. In ensuing online discussions and responses to blog

posts, Nestle expressed that it had not anticipated the role of Twitter but that attendees

tweeting was not discouraged by the company either. Attendees also stated that social media

outreach of any kind was not expected as a condition of their attendance at the event, and that

tweets such as the following one made after the event by attendee, @Totally_Toni, were not

asked for by Nestle: Its off to soccer this AM. I am taking a mug of Nescafe instant coffee with

me.

A visual representation of what occurred in this message dissemination is shown below

as Figure 1, below:


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Soft positive messages delivered by Nestle

to attendees at invitation-only event.

Attendees decided to use #NestleFamily

hashtag, and disseminate positive messages

related to Nestle and their experience at

the event in the public stream to their

followers on Twitter. The Twitter

sphere then reacted to those

messages with ones of their own.

Figure 1: Nestle Family Event message dissemination

The media became the message

The positive and thereby promotional tweets using the #NestleFamily hashtag did not generally

find favor with the mom blogger sphere of Twitter, a segment of which is pro-breastfeeding and

highly vocal in its stand against promotional marketing practices of artificial baby milka

recommendation of the World Health Organization in its positioning paper on the marketing of

baby formula. This lactivist segment of the mom blogger sphere was very critical of the mom

bloggers who were attending the Nestle event and were vocal in their questioning about the

Attendees

Twitter Sphere

Nestle


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reasons they were attending and representing Nestle. In this questioning, the lactivist segment

accused the attendees of being either misinformed, gullible, shills, uncaring or simply ignorant.

Of the 102 Twitter users coded for this study, 18 were identified as negatively reacting to the

attendees and the messages they were tweeting. The lactivists were outraged and demanded

answers about why the bloggers decided to go to the event, as well as expressing disappointment

that women they were associated with online were active with a company they felt was, in the

words of one lactivist, killing babies. The attending bloggers were summarily referred to as

one group together by these lactivist mom bloggers.

In comparison, just nine of the coded Twitter users were expressing negative attitudes to

the lactivist segment. The number of tweets produced by both sides of the argument gave a

similar overview, with 28 tweets being actively negative towards the attendees, and just 17

negative towards the lactivists.

We might view the two sides as being the extremes of opinion. A total of 56 mom

bloggers in the coded section of the Twitter discussions (just under 50 per cent of the coded

users) were not obviously aligned with either side. This group was very interested in finding out

more information about the event and Nestle itself. A great amount of conversation and

discussion ensued where a number of mom bloggers from the attendees to lactivists to those

supporting both of these, and others with no alignment provided information to each other,

challenged and supported each others stance, and reinforced each others position in what were

primarily information-seeking and information-sharing discussions. On the outskirts one non-

attending mom blogger (@mommygoggles) became a highly vocal proponent of Nestle and its

products while another non-attending blogger (@sheilacakes7) stated she hoped to be invited to


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the event if the company held it again the following year. These outskirt mom bloggers were also

highly dismissive of the concerns of the activists and even made light of some of their concerns.

A few hours into the event on September 30, Nestle created its own Twitter account,

@NestleFamily, to respond to the pointed questions being aimed at the attending mom bloggers

and the debate that was taking the focus of the hashtag #NestleFamily.

Nestle invited all those with questions to submit them directly to an email address for

response and invited one of the most critical bloggers to telephone with her extensive questions.

This blogger, known as Annie (@Phdinparenting), decided it would be best to submit the

questions via email, and have the responses in written form so they could be blogged for all to

see. She sent in some detailed questions, which Nestle then forwarded to its corporate offices in

Switzerland for a response. Over the next few weeks, Annie did a series of long posts on her

long-form blog with the full questions and answers as well as an analysis of them all and

appropriate links to external sources. These posts took more than a month and many hours of

detailed journalistic work on her behalf, even though she reports she is not a trained journalist.

Annie was also subject to significant focus and critique from areas of the online mom sphere

not unlike the focus suffered by the attendees. As a key influencer who many identify as the

leading activist within the moms on Twitter who were involved in the discussions and calling for

action from Nestle and the attendees, I was happy that Annie was included in all three areas of

my research. (Please note: Annie opted to be identified in this research and thesis where relevant,

as did two of the other depth interviewees.)

Mark Granovetters (1983) sociological theory of strong and weak ties says that social

structure can be identified as having two types of connections. Strong ties are those represented


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by close friends and family who each have a close relationship, and weak ties are represented by

acquaintances and colleagues or more distant friends, who have a less close relationship (pp.

201-203). The discussions in this case demonstrated what Granovetter has termed the strength

of weak ties. This theory relates to the importance weak ties play in our social networks.

Granovetter states that our social network is strengthened through our relationships with the

weak tie network because a number of weak ties in our network act as bridges to information,

connections and sharing with other members of society with whom we may not otherwise

connect (p.208).

It has been said that online networks feature a heightened number of weak tie

connections. This case study demonstrated a very rapid building of bridges through the

conversations and debate had by users in all areas of the discussions. It is indicated that this

plethora of weak ties featured not only bridging ties, but also what I am calling a tightening of all

the weak ties in the discussion, due to the sensitive nature of the topic. This tightening is actually

a concentration of intensity of relationship between the weak ties through this period, and it led

some to relate their intent to act offline personally through a boycott of the company and public

dissemination of the information they had learned.

Through this study it was also possible to identify a flux of the social capital of each of

the social actors in the Twitter sphere. The concept of social capital has been described as

changed because of our emergence into the Information Age and the Network Society (Acevedo

2007). Today we think of social capital as a commodity or indicator of wealth of both entire

networks and of individuals. It is social capital which underscores the influence networks and

individuals are deemed to have, as understood by those whom they seek to influence. In the

online sphere it would appear that social capital is highly dynamic. Reputation and


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influencegained offline is also sought online. It appears that this reputation may not

automatically be transferred from one sphere to the other. As the offline and online worlds

become one, we are at a point in history where social capital some have taken for granted may

now need to be reclaimed.

Social Actors

Nestle

Nestle refers to itself as the worlds leading Nutrition, Health and Wellness company. In 1867

the Nestle company developed the first artificial baby milk and since then it prides itself on

following sound human values and principles, and reflecting actions of basic ideas of

fairness, honesty and a general concern for people.

The Nestle headquarters are located in Vevey, Switzerland. Nestle sales for 2008 were

over $US103.6bn, with a net profit of over $US16.9bn. The company employs approximately

283,000 people worldwide and has factories in nearly every country. With brands ranging from

bottled water to pet foods and even the Jenny Craig weight loss centers, Nestle has a constant

presence in the everyday lives of a very large proportion of the worlds people.

For decades Nestle has come under fire regarding its business practices, particularly in

relation to its promotion and advertising of artificial baby milk (infant formula) and the quality,

health attributes and desirability of its products nutrition content.

Interestingly, recently concern has been expressed in blogs and online sources over the

Chairman of Nestle, Peter Brabecks belief that clean water is a saleable commodity rather than a


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basic human right (Wagenhofer, 2005)a statement which mainstream news media has largely

failed to cover.

For more than 30 years there have been consumer-led boycotts of Nestle products. In

fact, the World Health Organizations Code of Practice for Marketing Baby Milk Substitutes was

developed as a direct response to the actions of Nestle in promoting and sampling artificial baby

milk in developing countries. Nestles response can be interpreted as contradictory, in that it

states it supports and recognizes the WHO Code and abides by it when it is enshrined in law by

individual countries. Nestle says it recommends countries adopt the Code through legislation but

in countries that have not adopted the Code in a legally enforceable manner Nestle continues to

market its baby formula through sampling, giving incentives to the medical profession and

through other forms of advertising.

In recent years, media reports on the company have focused on its financial situation and

profitability rather than its questioned business and marketing practices, thereby limiting the

amount of independent information available to the general public on the situation.

Furthermore, the company has been taken to court on numerous occasions in the US and

internationally and a consumer-led boycott of the company has been instigated on more than one

occasion. Specifically related to its advertising messaging, the company has been forced by

independent arbitrators such as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACC) to

retract messages regarding the health aspects of a number of its products (for example: The ACC

enforced a ruling in September, 2006 that Nestle withdraw the claim that its Rollups range is

made with 65 per cent real fruit). Nestle has been sued by other companies for comparative

claims that have been proven untrue or simply not researched (for example, in 2010 Weight


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Watchers successfully sued Nestle over claims made by the Nestle-owned Jenny Craig weight

loss program that it enabled greater weight loss than Weight Watchers.)

The industry magazine,Advertising Age, estimated that Nestles global advertising spent

in 2008 was approximately $2.3 billion, making the company the 10th largest advertiser in the

world. In addition to this extremely large investment in advertising spent in traditional media

formats, Nestle has attempted to connect with consumers in the online sphere a number of times.

Following the event considered in this thesis, the company invited numerous mom bloggers to be

part of a Digital Think Tank that it claimed would reward people with Nestle products for

providing input on how Nestle would best communicate online. This initiative was met with

distrust by the mom blogger sphere, which was still smarting from the effects of the

NestleFamily event, and went no further than the primary sign-up invitation. Eventually the page

related to the Digital Think Tank was removed by Nestle.

The company held an inhouse Nestle Digital Day, where representatives of the

company and its advertising and marketing agencies were trained in social media and online

activities, reportedly by company representatives of online tools and sites such as Facebook.

Nestle has a presence on Facebook and other sites however activists continue to provoke the

company through these avenues and it is arguably yet to find an authentic resonance with any

online community. Nestles only productive effort to date appears to be a more traditional

promotion on the BlogHer community site, focused on mom bloggers, where it is currently

sponsoring a competition that will reward a blogger with $1,000. This activity is leveraging the

BlogHer identity as a middle-man between the company and the audience, creating a buffer more

similar to a traditional media message.


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Mom Bloggers

The term mom bloggers is a contentious one. While some believe the term is derogatory, I

have still decided to use it through this thesis as most people in the category will identify with it

in some way, and there does not appear to yet be another commonly used term which replaces it.

(While undertaking this research, it was interesting to observe women calling themselves

mommybloggers rather than anything elsea term which arguably attracts an even greater

negative reaction.) Broadly based and for the purposes of this thesis, a mom blogger is defined as

a woman who uses social media on a regular basis, and who is of child-bearing age or has had

children in her life at some point. This may include women who are personally childless, but are

aunts, foster moms, grandmothers, or even just child caregivers of some description.

Through my research endeavors and in particular, through attending (and presenting on

marketing) the Mom 2.0 Summit in 2010, I have identified three types of long-form blogs run by

mom bloggers. They are:

a. Pitch Methe blogger primarily focused on product reviews and marketing

relationships.

b. Magazinethe blogger that covers a variety of things they are interested and/or

specialize in.

c. Nichethe blogger that covers one specific topic.

All three of these blog types are primarily driven by their content and their perception of reader

expectation. Additionally, for the purposes of my definition, mom bloggers may not use a long

form blog at all, instead being present in the online sphere through other forms of social media


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such as Twitter and Facebook. While this definition is not necessarily one embraced or even

shared by all mom bloggers it is the definition I am using for the purpose of this case study.

Research is performed on the mom blogger sphere by market research company Nielsen,

which produces a Top 50 Power Moms list each year. To be classified as a Power Mom, Nielsen

states the woman must be between the ages of 25 and 54 with at least one child, and participate

regularly in online activities. With US-based moms being responsible for over 80 per cent of

their familys purchases, equating to over $US2 trillion in expenditure, it is no wonder that

companies are exploring new ways to connect with this audience in a focused way online in

addition to more traditional generalized forms of advertising and broadcast communication.

The way moms connect using social media is also telling. Research performed by Gather

and Mom Central Consulting in August 2009 (within one month of the case study this thesis

considers) revealed that over 60 per cent of moms reported making a new friend online in the last

year, 60 per cent said they had feelings of loneliness and 80 per cent believed they didnt have

enough friends in their lives. While less than half of the 1,321 moms surveyed said they lived

close to their family, more than 50 per cent said they didnt get enough support from their

spouse. Considering the merging of offline and online identities and relationships, more than a

third of the moms in the study reported having turned an online friendship into an offline one.

Finally, 71 per cent of moms who made friends online identified shared passions and interests (as

distinct from location) as being key factors to these friendships (Reuters, September 29, 2009).

The 2009 Women and Social Media Study (Compass Partners, 2009) identified both

frequency and behavioral aspects of how women use the internet and connect online. This study

said that out of 79 million US women who self-identified as being online, 42 million said they


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were involved in some type of social media activity on a weekly or more frequent basis.

(Definitions of social media activity included reading, posting and commenting on blogs, social

networks such as Facebook and Twitter, message boards and status updating.) (Compass

Partners, 2009, p. 7) It found that women who blog are significantly more active across all forms

of social media. This study identified that one third of women surveyed had a college degree or

above and one quarter of them had an income of over $75,000 (Compass Partners, 2009, p.12).

There are millions of women taking up blogging, with the primary reasons being for fun (76

per cent) and to express myself (73 per cent), rather than motivations of persuading others (22

per cent) or earning money (17 per cent) (Compass Partners, 2009, p. 17).

Identifying a need to be a part of a community received a low resonance of purpose with

those surveyed, with just 29 per cent of respondents saying they sought community online it

appears women do not recognize they may be looking for groups of people, and instead are

looking for individuals to connect with who share common interests.

It is interesting to note, however, that while women say they do not seek financial

influence online, 85 per cent of them said they made a purchasing decision as a result of a

recommendation or customer experience posted on a blog (Compass Partners, 2009, p. 22).

In the US, there are more than four conferences a year focused on mom bloggers. The

largest, BlogHer, is held annually in August at different locations around the country. Organizers

say the conference expects to attract over 1,800 attendees in 2010. Another conference, the Mom

2.0 Summit, had over 350 attendees in February of 2010, with 40 per cent representing marketers

of corporate entities and the other 60 per cent being mom bloggers. Other major mom blogger

conferences are Blissdom and TypeAMom, and there are many smaller conferences based in


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different regions of the USA. All of these events focus on providing offline networking

opportunities for members of the mom blogger sphere. While the realm of mom blogger is into

the millions in the US, attendees of these conferences do not treat blogging lightlythey may

range from moms who self-identify as committed hobbyists with personal diaries through to

professional publishers, seeking high level relationships with sponsors and advertising revenue.

As millions of US women connect with each other online through social media including

blogs, companies who see women as their target audiences are trying to garner their attention in

this new sphere. While this realm is relatively new, interesting comparisons are being drawn

between the way mom bloggers are treated by companies compared to traditional professional

journalists and mainstream news organizations. Free products for review and tickets to shows for

the mom bloggers entire family may be regularly provided, along with additional free items

intended to be given away through the mom bloggers network. Test months with cars and

Disney cruises have also been given to mom bloggers who are deemed to be influential to an

audience of readers specifically targeted by companies who would like to tap into their extensive

audience and leverage the mom bloggers profile.

It is also common for companies to hold mom blogger events, similar in style to

traditional press conferences or junkets, where the bloggers have an all-expenses-paid

opportunity to indulge in the companys products and enjoy social time with other mom bloggers

face to face. Depending upon the companys budget and goals, these events may be held in

different cities for mom bloggers in their individual city locations, or put together for a very

select few mom bloggers who may be flown in.


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This conduct has become so common that some mom bloggers are starting blogs with the

primary goal being to take advantage of what is commonly called swag, and as of October

2009 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has initiated new regulations compelling bloggers

whose recommendation of a product may be confused as a personal endorsement by a reader, to

disclose any sponsorships or complimentary products received that may be perceived to have

influenced the recommendation (Federal Trade Commission, 2009).

Companies will regularly hire consultants who can help identify the most appropriate

mom bloggers to connect with for a companys purposes (whether that is product reviews or

activists, etc). For example, Nintendo worked with marketing company Brands About Town to

hold a series of mom blogger events to promote its Wii Fit Plus in December, 2009. Groups of

10 to 15 mom bloggers were invited to different cities to try out the product and to enjoy some

time with other mom bloggers. Each mom blogger at the Nintendo event left with their own Wii

Fit Plus as a giftsomething not dissimilar to gifts given to traditional mainstream media.

Technology

Twitter

The social networking site Twitter was launched in October 2006, and has over two million

people registered with accounts. Each Twitter user has a page with a very basic profile including

name and location, an avatar, the number of Twitter users following them and the number they

follow. There are myriad intricacies to the service, including the ability to lock your tweets so

only followers you have approved may see them and send messages to you; the ability to block

others from seeing your content or contacting you; the ability to directly message another Twitter


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user privately, as well as user generated forms of syntax and etiquette, all of which are constantly

developing.

Although Twitter status postings are limited to 140 characters or less, the content of the

discourse is substantive when considered as a broader conversation. While it exists online, the

discourse is a representation of a traditional asynchronous conversation channel, where peoples

conversations are structured by the technologys character limitations to be highly dynamic. The

technological framework of Twitter does not support a flattening effect to social bonds suggested

by other research. In fact, I would assert there are both information and affective exchanges on

Twitter. People feel attached emotionally to others, and demonstrate it through exchanges of

information and concern. Furthermore, the global nature of Twitter invites issues to be shared

and felt by a community which is not limited by geographic proximity.

It is interesting to note that Twitter was not originally designed by its developers to be a

platform for conversation and discussion. Instead the developers believed people would use it to

simply post status updates about what they were doing, for a chosen range of friends they already

knew offline. Since its launch and adoption by the user base, Twitter has morphed from the

original idea to becoming a mass-adopted communication tool, connecting people across the

globe who share conversations related to information giving, sharing and networking. At its

recent official developer conference, the company announced it currently has over 105 million

user accounts in operation.

Syntax employed by Twitter users

Different to other CMC tools, particularly text messaging and instant messaging, the syntax of

Twitter is more likely to include complete and accurately spelled messages. Occasionally the


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140-character limit results in a message being tweeted which includes a small number of

abbreviations (commonly the letter R for are, or U for you), but these are not standardized

enough to be regular. Reading tweets becomes less difficult than reading text messaging

communications because of this. In this study most tweets included complete English formats,

however occasionally abbreviations were used. It is important to note that some abbreviations are

normalized in particular communities, and for this study the abbreviation BF (an abbreviation of

breastfeeding) was somewhat common. The same type of abbreviation operates on Twitter for

formula feeding (FF).

The use of Hashtags on Twitter

As a communication tool Twitter users have adopted a particular form of syntax which helps

make the most of the technology framework. One part of this framework is the use of a pound

sign before a word, to indicate a topic classification for discussion. In the Twitter syntax context,

the pound sign # is referred to as a hashtag, and identifies a keyword that conversations around

a particular topic may be searched on through the use of Twitters search function. For example,

for the purposes of this case study, a Twitter search on the hashtag #NestleFamily was

conducted. Alternatively, if a third-party Twitter client is being used such as the popular

Tweetdeck, a stream of all the tweets that include the hashtag can be aggregated and fed through

a single column on the screen.

When a user initiates a hashtag it invites others to include the same hashtag as part of the

conversation. In this way all participants in a discussion can see what each other is saying on the

topic, even if they are not following each other (that is, even if they are not already identified

as being included in an individuals personal community). It regularly happens that some will


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begin to follow others as a direct result of their comments on a hashtags discussion, with the

result being an expansion of their own community.

User account identifiers

Twitter account holders are referred to as their account name with an @ symbol before it (for

example, @Mediamum). Due to the fact this linguistic function is used on Twitter itself, I have

decided to continue its use in this thesis. Additionally, in tweets that are quoted as examples of

trends, I have placed the Twitter account holders name in parentheses before the tweet. This is

to aid in the understanding of whom is speaking, without the context of the Twitter framework

supporting it.

Within a 140 character posting, if part of a conversation the direction of the tweet is

identified by the inclusion of @. While most Twitter users have unlocked accounts and

so their tweets are all public to the entire Twitter online sphere, if the start of any tweet begins

with an @, it ensures that the only people able to read that tweet in a general stream of

tweets are those who follow both the tweets author and its directed recipient. This does not,

however, carry across to the Twitter search function, and all tweets with the searched keyword or

hashtag will be identified, unless a Twitter user has a locked account in which case the locked

users tweets are only ever seen by those users the author has included in their community.

Internet connectivity

While 60 per cent of American adults access the internet via broadband connections at home, 55

per cent use wireless devices, including phones, to access the internet (Rainie, 2010). This latest

development in user connectivity to the web means we no longer see the internet as a separate

realm to our everyday lives, only accessible through a single standalone computer for a specific


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time period. Instead, connection to the internet and all it provides has become a pervasive part of

our real life culture that is constantly vying for our attention and is accessible whenever and

wherever we are. Today we live in a society where we simultaneously demand instantaneous

connections with friends, colleagues and acquaintances, and also have them demand an

immediacy of connection with us as well.

Methodology

In approaching this study, I have taken inspiration from the structure and methodologies used by

Cassell and Tversky (2005) in their paper, The Language of Online Intercultural Community

Formation in which a triangulated ethnographic study was used to unveil numerous areas within

a similar research area. Addressing an online community created specifically for children, their

paper provides insights into how community interactions between participants change over time.

My own research draws on this prior work and uses a mixed method ethnographic model. I

believe this strategy is the best way to perform accurate and detailed research in an area which is

dynamically evolving and currently under-researched. The intent is to both explore my research

questions while also identifying areas of opportunity for further research.

In conducting this research, in many senses, I may be classified as a participant observer.

I am a mom who blogs and uses Twitter with a very high number of online followers, and wide

ranging audience. I would, through my own self-reflection, fall into the category identified here

as a mom blogger, and some regular Twitter users particularly within my own community would

readily identify me as pro-breastfeeding or more colloquially, crunchy. With this in mind, from

the earliest stages of this research I was very careful to disengage from conversations in and

around the #NestleFamily stream during the dates the tweets were being collected for this


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research. I have included coding for my own Twitter stream (@Mediamum) which happened to

fall within the time of the 400 tweets that were coded, but note that each of my tweets throughout

the time period related purely to asking people to complete the online questionnaire, or thanking

people for inviting others to do the same. While there were no tweets from my account during

this time either in support or otherwise of any of the participants, I must identify here that a small

number of Twitter users may already have had a pre-existing impression of my personal

allegiance before the #NestleFamily topic began to be discussed, purely based on previous

conversations and the identity work performed in them. This impression, however, is balanced

by my role as a graduate student and researcher, which is just as prominent a topic, and part of

my identity on Twitter.

There were three data sets used in this research:

1. Twitter stream of the #NestleFamily hashtag

400 tweets representing 102 Twitter users were taken from a collection of 2300 randomly

identified tweets that were categorized with #NestleFamily between the dates of 29 September

and 4 October, 2009, as well as the long-form blog posts linked to those tweets. Included in the

long-form blog posts were detailed and at times very lengthy comments from other members of

the Twitter sphere who had been involved in the discussions on Twitter. I reviewed all of these

blog posts that were identified within the 400 tweets coded.

2. Online questionnaire

An online questionnaire was created to investigate how respondents felt about other

members of the mom blogger community and those attending the Nestle event. The data set

consists of 68 respondents who were invited to reply through the #NestleFamily categorization


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on Twitter over the same time frame the discussions on the hashtag were happening. The

questionnaire was anonymous in order to gain the most honest answers and respondents included

both event attendees and non-attendees. The questionnaire was delivered concurrently with the

event and the discussions on Twitter, offering valuable insights while the event and Twitter

discussions were actually underway, rather than them being reflective.

3. Depth interviews, blog posts and comments

Four depth interviews were conducted with individuals identified as being key

influencers in the #NestleFamily discussions. These interviews were conducted six months

following the event and #NestleFamily Twitter discussions. Two of the individuals were

attendees of the event who were also involved in the online discussions, and the other two were

mom blogger activists who were purely involved in the online discussions. To add to this data I

also visited nine long-form mom blog posts related to the #NestleFamily event that were directly

linked to in the 400 coded tweets.

Additionally I attended a mom blogger conference, Mom 2.0 Summit from February 18

to 20, 2010, in Houston, Texas, in order to gain observational insights into the community.

1. The Twitter stream

Over time, conventions of syntax have been introduced by those who use Twitter in order to

assist conversational organization, direction and flow. One of these conventions is the use of

what is called a hashtag. The hashtag (otherwise known in the US as a pound sign) is a

construct which has been popular in previous iterations of social networks, and has been

introduced and accepted widely on Twitter. The inclusion of a hashtag in a tweet operates to

categorize the content of the tweet as relating to a particular topic area or conversation. The


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introduction of hashtags to the syntax of Twitter was developed organically by users, rather than

by the creators of Twitter itself. However, Twitter supports this user-led development through

ongoing integration of the hashtag in recognizing trending topics.

Throughout the Nestle event and its discussions on Twitter, the hashtag #NestleFamily

was introduced by attendees of the event, to identify tweets related to the event. For my purposes

in the preliminary content analysis, I pulled together 2300 randomly scraped tweets that were

tagged #NestleFamily in order to give an indication as to the use of the hashtag on this one topic

area, and to gain some idea of the sentiment and key influencers on the topic.

Due to Twitter only holding publicly available tweets on any particular search for a short

time frame, I used the Twitter search function, and manually copied all the tweets that came up

with the #NestleFamily tag. I recognize that using this methodology may have missed a number

of relevant tweets, and does not reflect the entire scope of the discussion on the Nestle issue or

the event due to the fact I did not scrape any tweets that did not feature the hashtag. I expect

there were many tweets that could have been informative, but for the purposes of investigating

the early stage of this work, the preliminary (though primitive) form of simply copying the

tweets was deemed sufficient.

Of the 2300 tweets, I manually coded 400 of them in order to gain insights that could be

combined with the results of the second piece of research, the online questionnaire. (The code

book, and results of this coding, are included as Appendix 2.) In developing coding attributes for

approaching this data, I identified basic characteristics that demonstrate modes of conversation,

and basic characteristics of identity work and content. They were:


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a. The identifying name of the person tweeting and who they were speaking to (if

anyone in particular beyond those following the hashtag).

b. Whether they included a link to an external piece of work by themselves (such as

their own long form blog post), or if they linked to something that was posted by another

mom blogger (the other mom bloggers long form blog post).

c. Whether they included a link to an external agency or company site (commonly

Nestle itself, or the World Health Organization).

Other areas of interest in this coding moved beyond the structure of the conversation and

instead looked at the sentiment behind the tweet. This was the most difficult part of the coding as

regularly in such short, sharp messages, firmly identifiable positive or negative sentiment is

difficult to identify. In any case where the sentiment was unclear, ambiguous or simply difficult

to identify without surrounding context or investigating a given link, I did not code the tweet in

any way at all. As the only coder, and due to the fact I coded all 400 tweets in one day, I am

confident the reliability of this coding is high. Sentiment was identified as being either positive

or negative towards attendees of the event; and positive or negative towards the activists who

were discussing the event using the #NestleFamily tag on Twitter.

It was tempting to also consider identifying sentiment towards Nestle, and I realize that

some may wish for that to have occurred. However, in the interests of maintaining focus on the

mom blogger sphere and how members of it react and support each other, I did not investigate

sentiment toward the company itself. The company entity has never been identified as being part

of the mom blogger sphere at all, and it is new to using social media. Since this research was

conducted, Nestle has furthered its social media efforts which have not found favor with the


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online sphere (for example, Fox, 2010), and I believe further research into how large multi-

nationals such as Nestle can approach and effectively create branded relationships with

consumers in the social media sphere would be valuable.

2. The online questionnaire

During the days of the Twitter debate, I created a SurveyGizmo online questionnaire and invited

those involved in the #NestleFamily discussion stream to respond to questions related to their

impressions of other members of the mom blogger community, the attendees and thoughts about

the nature of the discussions. The intent of the questionnaire was to enable people to reveal their

own point of view anonymously and privately. The invitation to complete the survey was

extended through the same Twitter stream and was also tagged #NestleFamily, with a direct link

to the survey. The survey was retweeted throughout the community over a number of days by

people who represented both attendees and others who were agreeing and disagreeing on this

topic. As a result of the broad promotion over 500 people visited the questionnaire, with 68 full

responses. These 68 respondents represented attendees of the Nestle event, the general mom

blogger community, and even those beyond that realm but who were interested in the content for

other reasons (for example, activists from international organizations such as Baby Milk

Canada).

Respondents come from across the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia, and

interestingly, 80 per cent of respondents to the questionnaire stated they had only used the

#NestleFamily hashtag discuss the topic on Twitter. This revelation adds weight to the portion of

research using a random sample of tweets that simply use the same hashtag. It would appear that

the majority of people tweeting about the #NestleFamily topic consistently used the


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#NestleFamily hashtag when doing so. The rich data set offered through the online questionnaire

was gathered while the discussions on Twitter and the event were actually in progres

The Latent Sphere of the Network Society

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