Prompt:

  • What are the benefits of a diverse and inclusive PLN in social media sharing that understands where you are coming from with messaging that impacts the community?

Diverse PLNs are a great tool for everyone to take part in. There are many aspects of diverse PLNs that stem from the internet that allow for increased sharing of knowledge. Knowledge sharing is not limited to geographical location. In the increasingly digital and global community, social media is a vital tool to engage with. This fosters inclusivity which will only provide more enriching knowledge sharing methods, such as conversations and infographics. Additionally, the varying contexts where PLNs are created is another reason to employ them into one’s life. For example, in the educational context online PLNs can be used to share research, host webinars, and engage with others in different locations.

There are a multitude of benefits of having a PLN that is applicable to wide audience while targeting a certain topic or issue. For example, some benefits of this are:

  1. Increasing Awareness: Often times having a diverse network allows not only the individual sharing but also the people receiving the information to be exposed to new viewpoints or backgrounds. This is an important part of being online as we all need to expand our ideas in this increasingly global community. We can gain empathy and approach situations with more knowledge rather than with ignorance.
  2. Community Impact: Being inclusive with messaging, your PLN is a powerful tool used to positively impact the broader community. By bringing issues to light, whatever the issue may be, you can raise awareness about issues that arise that affect members of your community or just general social injustices.
  3. Personal Growth: By interacting with individuals from varying backgrounds, we can all demonstrate personal growth. Everyone brings a unique perspective and understanding other people’s perspective can allow us to be more open-minded and expand our current opinions.
  4. Enhanced Learning: Through diverse PLNs it is possible for you to gain more perspectives and more insight that you may not have gotten elsewhere. PLNs combine multiple individuals and is a space to learn and share. This further shows the impacts of social media as it can bring so many individuals together.
  5. Targeted Messaging: Through social media platforms it is becoming increasingly easier to target your audience and deliver information to them Social media is a valuable tool that demonstrates the reach the internet has, it allows you to reach a wider audience with the same message. This can teach us how to communicate better and collaborate with other individuals.