Social Stories: Digital Storytelling and Social Media

Johns Hopkins University assistant professor Jessica Marie Johnson focuses on social media, which she says is "uniquely suited" to expanding the possibility of digital storytelling. Johnson discusses the impact of traditional blogs and archive platforms; the evolution of Faceook and Twitter; and the significance of the social media "build," which includes profile and cover photos, bios, and other descriptive information. She highlights several Twitter accounts devoted to telling the stories of enslaved people as well the Brown Girls Museum Blog, which makes use of social media to elevate the voices of marginalized groups.