Ethnographic study of young people's use of social media and its relationship with memory

Social media platforms are online spaces where young people express themselves, establish, and maintain social relationships. Social media allows individuals to come together around common interests, and this leads to the transfer of social memories, shaped by daily events, beliefs, values, and norms, to these platforms. This study aims to explore the role of young people's social media usage habits in their daily lives, focusing on online and offline connections, in the context of the shaping of social memory. While discussing whether social media can be accepted as new public spaces, the historical change of the public sphere is reviewed, with a focus on the historical development of new media and its role in daily life. In this context, the study was conducted using a long-term participant ethnographic method with 40 university student participants. Participants were asked to describe themselves through requested visual and auditory materials; these shares were mapped. According to the results of the study, social media platforms are an essential tool for young people to express themselves and maintain their social ties and play a significant role in shaping social memory. When young people share on social media, they face a wide range of risks, such as conflicts with family and friends, being criticized, not being liked, or facing legal sanctions. The intense flow of information on social media increases feelings of despair and hopelessness among young people, weakens feelings of social unity, and the traces of this information in memory can lead to constant feelings of insecurity, uncertainty, fatigue, and despair, as well as a desire to leave the country. This situation complicates the establishment of a sustainable social memory. On the other hand, for young people, participation in social issues and resistance themes on social media are closely related to the continuation of memory. This study aims to address the gap in the literature regarding the relationship between young people's social media usage and social memory.