Drowning in social media: does real engagement happen offline?

LSE MsC student Jill Russo reflects on a visit from Carine Valleau, founder of Stories for Humanity Gone are the days of the “Letter to the Editor”, of audience participation relegated to a few heavily-curated inches of print. Today it’s possible to consume content online and immediately comment on it, to engage in constructive dialogue (or bitter barb-swapping) with writers, editors, and other readers, all total strangers. Barriers to access to the tools of production and distribution are lower than ever before in many parts of the world; user-generated content abounds.