Blog Post #5: EOTO Presentations

 All of the presentations given were extremely informational and I can definitely say I learned something new in each one. The presentation that stood out to me the most was Alexa Beck's presentation on the history and origin of Facebook and Instagram. While there are many negative factors surrounding social media today, I think it is important to be knowledgeable of the history and origin of social media platforms in order to understand the purpose of why it was created. I believe that social media can be extremely helpful and beneficial if it is used for the right purposes. Additionally, the topics discussed in her presentation directly relate to my presentation on the Apple iPhone because today many people associate these apps with the early years of the iPhone and the App Store.

Facebook was launched in February 2004 by current CEO Mark Zuckerberg with the help of four of his fellow schoolmates at Harvard University. It amazes me how this app created and used by college students was transformed into a major social media platform. According to an article published by Britannica , Facebook became known as the largest social media platform in the world, having nearly three billion users as of 2021. I like that Alexa mentioned in her presentation how its interesting that Facebook was a social media platform initially created by and for college students. However, in today's world, Gen Z views this platform as an app used mostly by older generations. 

Instagram was created in 2010 by two Stanford graduates, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. While this social media platform is very similar to Facebook, the main difference is that Instagram started as a mobile app in the beginning because the Apple App Store did not launch until 2008. Now Instagram and Facebook are a part of the same company, Meta. The company was launched as a result of Mark Zuckerberg wanting to rebrand Facebook, which is a great strategy if you want your company to grow and expand.