The Phenomenon of the New in the Context of Social Media

Abstract

This paper analyzes the phenomenon of the new in the context of social media using the interpretative phenomenological approach based on interviews with social media users. The new, which is mostly used as an adjective (a property), in this paper is treated as a noun (an object), a phenomenon of perception described in three aspects: (1) as the future in presence, (2) as the opposite, (3) as a value. Usually, the new is associated with time, but in the context of social media perception, it rather appears as a value-saturated phenomenon. Two opposing attitudes can be distinguished: on the one hand, the new is seen as a desired progress, on the other hand, it includes an alienation from the being. This alienation also prevents us from seeing the new media as it is.