planning and operational perspectives;

 technological and non-technological perspectives;

 legal perspectives;

 international perspectives; and

 futuristic perspectives.

 chief digital officers;

 chief information officers;

 chief technology officers;

 chief ethical officers;

 communications managers and other professionals;

 marketing managers and other professionals;

 information technology managers and other professionals;

 corporate governance professionals;

 managers and executives in corporate, government and nongovernment organisations; and

 academics and students of information science, information management, information systems, knowledge management and marketing.

Chapter overview

Anyone who is reading this, and most of the people known to us, are an integral part of a large cohort in modern society that can still remember when any social media application had yet to take effect. The future is certain to be one full of excitement and promise, plus more than a few related challenges. This is indicated herein through the research and considered opinions expressed by people who share their perspectives of how social media affects the evolving, modern world, as well as how all of that can have an impact upon the future of people, privacy, politics and the promotion of humanitarian campaigns.

Understandably, there are many aspects of social media that can be intertwined in relation to particular topics upon which contributing authors have focused. The sequence of the following chapters, therefore, was contemplated in relation to interlocking themes, with the resultant sequence bearing no relation to the comparative importance of these contributions. In effect, the eventual progression of chapters arose from the telling of a story, whereby we commenced with an introduction to social media issues provided in the first chapter, which are related to the growth of the user population, what they do online and how this can affect others. Next, we see how legal implications arise, and why these might differ internationally. Then, we ponder what the ramifications might be at a deeper level within society and government. Thereafter, we review social media usage in the not-for-profit, academic and business sectors. This is followed by further guidance as to the proper implementation and management of social media strategies in any organisational environment. Finally, we conclude with a view of what is likely to arise from widespread social media usage in time to come, as is done in terms of future social discourse.

What follows are the chapters, presented in summary form, so as to show the related flow of themes herein.

The first chapter is by the Editor, Cornelis Reiman, entitled ‘Social media growth and global change’. This initial part of the collection is introductory in nature, and with focus upon broad topics and effects arising from the phenomenon of social media. There is attention paid to the history of social media, the rising use of social media in relation to social and political activism, plus social media in the workplace, as well as legal implications of social media usage overall. Also, social analytics are introduced, which relies upon the vast amount of data that social media users generate.

It is well known that the United States of America upholds freedom of speech, having enshrined this liberty in the Constitution of that country. Yet there is a necessary history that must be understood for anyone to gain an appreciation of how judicial decisions relate to recent cases involving flash mobs and, more importantly, how such decisions can affect future outcomes of such cases. In this regard, Margot Kaminski, Executive Director of the Information Society Project at Yale Law School, presents a riveting chapter entitled ‘Flash rob or protest movement: the First Amendment and regulating online calls to action’. This is a learned work, and one that is instructive, as much as it is educational.

Next, Kurt Ramin and Antje Meyer provide a much more global perspective of legal issues in ‘World justice – the rule of law around the world’. This interesting chapter, as the title suggests, discusses the Rule of Law Index in considering the legal impact upon social media. The Index provides an intriguing analysis of what constitutes the rule of law in different countries, with attention paid to Germany, China and the United Arab Emirates. In addition, the authors pose a pertinent question: social media – chance or challenge?

Appropriately, this prospect of challenges leads to the chapter by Florian Hadler and Gabriel Yoran, entitled ‘Default metaphysics – social networks and the...