Social Media Sharing- A Difference in Kind

 In completing this week's reading I couldn't get past this line..."What we are witnessing today is a difference in the degree of sharing so large it becomes a difference in kind" (Shirky 149).

In the old days of just email and print media, information wasn't shared as readily nor as easily, so it was much easier to contain it's dispersal.  With social media these days, before anyone can even confirm or deny a claim it's already everywhere, good, bad or ugly.  This can cause quite an inflammatory situation, and it is important that we sift through and identify by what means the information is gained.  Configuration of that material is key for the information to be considered reputable.  I remember going to school for my undergrad and researching whether or not a source was trustworthy when writing a paper, in the same way should all of these social media forums be weighed.