Here's an interesting article about the current trends of social media. The author uses the term "social discovery" to refer to the phenomenon of posting and sharing what users have found versus what users are doing. I think it's a very interesting concept, and he's hitting the nail right on the head. Media sites like Pintrest, Tumblr, StumbleUpon and Reddit are all about sharing something that one has found and deems interesting and worthy of sharing, perhaps for their own benefit (self-esteem) or for the benefit of others (shared knowledge). 

Scroll through your Facebook feed. I'm finding more and more that my friends are posting articles, videos, songs, etc. instead of the self-deprecating status update or the pointless daily minutiae. The idea of sharing media on the Internet with any number of people is so commonplace now that we don't even think about. Of course, this is what the Internet was originally built for, but it wasn't until just a few years ago that people started to think about creating a "social network" such as Facebook or its predecessor, Myspace. I am curious to see where social media goes in the near future. Will its bubble burst and become a faded trend? Or will it's presence become even more ubiquitous and synonymous with the Internet?

P.S. As a tip of the hat to "social discovery", I originally came across this article on Reddit, and now I'm re-blogging it! (Redditors, sorry, I know this a re-post ;) )