tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196496262011-04-21T17:27:05.785-07:00Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12528142594447810829noreply@blogger.comBlogger11100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19649626.post-1133935111349424732005-12-06T21:58:00.000-08:002005-12-07T13:02:41.153-08:00<span style="font-weight:bold;">Social Capital</span><br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_capital">Social capital</a> refers to the value of an individuals social networks. With the invention of the internet and subsequent rise in popularity of the medium, sociologists have debated whether or not its increased usage has increased or decreased social capital.<br /><br />Musicians using <a href="http://www.myspace.com">Myspace</a> find their social capital to be greatly increased. Historically, musicians have relied on word of mouth, and "Do it yourself" techniques to spread the word about upcoming shows and gain fans and exposure. However, Myspace offers tools to reach a larger crowd with more ease.<br /><br /><a href="http://music.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=music.search&Mytoken=A94C77BC-3549-4A29-A71053C0D629276C411607453">Search tools</a> allow bands to find other bands based on genre, geographic location, show dates, and other fields. Similarly, musicians can find individuals who share a common interest in their genre of music or who live in the local area and would be interested in finding a show.<br /><br /><a href="http://classifieds.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=classifieds.listAds&catId=9&Mytoken=443CCC39-9D0D-432A-81BBD955ADA23087411633343">Classifieds</a> create a space where musicians can find other musicians with similar musical tastes to play with.<br /><br />Barry Wellman says, "We suspect that people not only have more relationships than in pre-Internet times, they are in more frequent contact with their relationships, and the strengthening of the bonds through more frequent contact means that ties can be more readily mobilized for aid," (319).<br /><br />Where as in the past, musicians would meet prospective fans and other musicians at shows and lose contact with them, Myspace presents a forum for strengthening of ties. Friending individuals you meet in the real world, combined with those found in the virtual world creates an online fan base, and allows for easier access to music.<br /><br />This online fanbase can then be mobilized through online promotion of upcoming shows or new songs to attend shows in real life. In addition to flyers and tradtional word of mouth, online messages and advertisements make it easier to alert fans to upcoming events. <br /><br />As Wellman says "Most relationships formed in cyberspace continue in physical space," (294). Myspace is a tool that creates the opportunity to form cyberspace relations that will hopefully branch out into physical space relations.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/19649626-113393511134942473?l=communityiedl.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Danhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12528142594447810829noreply@blogger.com