In this episode I spoke to Sian Lincoln about her “Facebook Timelines” project in which they spoke to people about their use of the social network. We discuss the “scroll back method” of interviewing she used to explore the role of Facebook in young peoples’ lives. Sian and I reflect on Facebook etiquette and how people police each other’s behaviour online. We also talk about the central place which nostalgia takes in Facebook but how it structures perceptions of the future. Sian also suggests from her analysis that Facebook’s success (over other, like Myspace, which failed) was enabled by the simultaneous rise of smartphones and that Facebook use is becoming less public. Also, is Facebook cool any more? Was it ever cool?

Sian is on twitter @sianlincoln

You can read more of Sian’s work with Brady Robards on “editing the self” on Facebook, and making romantic relationships “official” on Facebook.

https://soundcloud.com/digitalsociology/digital-sociology-podcast-episode-2-sian-lincoln

iTunes:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/digital-health-digital-capitalism/id1202207046?mt=2