Being written by Emily Shim.
Overview[]
Tumblr is a microblogging platform and social media website founded by David Karp and currently owned by Yahoo! Inc. It is currently the number 19 most visited website in America.
Definition[]
Tumblr is a microblogging platform mixed with a social media website that allows users to blog and reblog different multimedia content to a blog. The origin of the company's name comes from the creation of “tumblelogs,” a combination of “tumble” and “web-logging." It is most efficient for sharing pictures and short messages to its readers. The website is known for its simple aesthetics and easy content posting. Each user owns a URL that they create. Content is posted to their blog. The platform is available in traditional website form, as well as mobile and app form.
Users can follow each other, reblog and like posts, post quotes, links, photos, gifs, and videos, comment on different content, and message other blogs, either known or anonymously. They can also edit their blogs using themes, or customize them with specialized designs by using simple coding.
Tumblr is also a platform for discussion amongst its users and allows people to freely discuss issues such as social justice and society. It is a tool for social literacy and allows it users to better understand culture through discussing relevant cultural information.
How it Works[]
Tumblr has several features that make it more convenient and engaging for their users to blog. These tools are displayed for users on the home page of the Tumblr website.
Dashboard: comparable to the "newsfeed" of Facebook or Twitter, where the most recently blogged and reblogged posts from blogs that you are following are displayed.
Explore page: Where users can see recommended posts and blogs.
Messages: Where users are able to receive messages from other Tumblr users, both anonymously or by username.
Notifications: Where users are able to view who reblogged or liked posts that they reblogged or posted, as well as follow others' blogs.
Account: Where users can see information about their blog such as number of followers, likes, and recent activity.
Tags: Users can use tags on their pictures and posts to make them easier for others to find when the topic is searched.
Radar: Recommended blogs that are popular in the Tumblr community.
History[]
Tumblr was developed in 2006 by David Karp. However, the history of Tumblr can be traced back to March 2005 with "the golden era" of blogging platforms like Blogger and Wordpress. A 17 year old high school student from Germany named Chris Neukirchen decided to create a website unlike, the traditional blogging site, with a list of interesting links, quotes, and pictures. This sparked the creation of “tumblelogs,” a combination of “tumble” and “web-logging.” Neukirchen called his blog, "Anarchai". The site was extremely simple in nature and contained an archive system where posts were organized by month and year.
Marcel Molina then came along and said that he "wanted to create a cohesive narrative that was heterogenous and visually attractive as a group." The result was "Projectionist", the world's second tumblelog. Projectionist was a polished version of Anarchaia.
David Karp created Tumblr by using both Projectionist and Anarchaia as inspiration. Tumblr combined Projectionist and Anarchaia into in one platform. It allowed users to register their own Tumblr URL, customize their blog, and easily share videos, text, and GIFs.
Throughout this same time frame, Facebook and Twitter rose in the social media world, but neither social network really came close to the blogging style pioneered by the tumblelogs.
Tumblr soon ascended to the national spotlight, raising more than $4.5 million in venture capital and registering more than 50,000 blogs. On May 20th 2013, Yahoo announced that it was buying Tumblr, a popular blogging platform, for $1.1 billion in cash.
Examples[]
Tumblr is often used as a platform for speaking on social justice. Awareness and advocacy.
The first image to the right shows a hashtag used to convey a message and spread awareness about a social issue. In this case the issue would be "black history you didn't learn in school." By using hash tags in order to spread a message, users can contribute material, as well as reblog items related to the hashtag for others in the Tumblr community to view.
Tumblr is active in promoting minority, gender, sexual, and racial equality issues. There are many blogs dedicated to these causes. For example, the image on the right shows a post from a specific blog that is speaking about the accomplishment of an openly transgender student. This example showcases an affordance of Tumblr as exposing people to issues that are often not covered in traditional and mainstream media.
Similarly, the image below the one previously mentioned sparks conversation about how gender stereotypes are played out in the media and allows Tumblr users to become aware of the daily prejudice in the media that are normal in popular culture. Many of the posts created by Tumblr users cause the audience to question why different things similar to this happen.
Culture[]
Tumblr has acquired a distinct culture based on its target population of younger millennials. The culture mainly revolves around humor and sarcasm, such as in the image to the right. Other elements include only sharing blogs with trusted friends, a variety of memes and gifs, and different subcultures such as:
-fandoms
-food porn
-fitspo
-social justice
-cute animals
-soft grunge
-seasonal
- GIFs & memes
Further Readings[]
Fink, M., & Miller, Q. (2014). Trans Media Moments: Tumblr, 2011–2013. Television & New Media, 15(7), 611-626. doi:10.1177/1527476413505002
"Trans Media Moments: Tumblr, 2011–2013"
"This article takes note of affordances for counter-public communication on social networking sites," comparing Tumblr to an asexuality bulletin to show how Tumblr can be used as an affordance for communication about a specific issue as well as how it can be used.
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Tumblr
This article shows how people, who are not scholars, can define the platform of Tumblr without any restrictions. This often shows the true nature, or stereotypes associated with the website and its community of users.
http://freebeacon.com/blog/sjw-tumblr-probably-did-not-care-for-my-pro-empire-piece/
"The Toxicity of Social Justice on Tumblr"
This article shows an opposing side of Tumblr, saying that it does not facilitate social justice. It is shown instead what happens when users step outside the norms of the community and how drastic their actions can be.
"This Mom Posted Raw Post-Mastectomy Photos to Prove a Point About Breast Cancer Awareness"
Tumblr often provides a platform for issues and images that would be flagged as inappropriate on other social media websites, such as Facebook or Instagram. This article discusses how a breast cancer survivor took to Tumblr to show raw images of her breast after breast cancer treatment. This shows how Tumblr can be used to tell important individual stories and raise awareness and advocacy, in some cases.
http://www.vulture.com/2015/10/south-park-yaoi-gay-fan-art.html#
"How Gay-Themed South Park Fan Art Wound up on the Show"
Tumblr often functions as a place where artists are free to manipulate different media and form a new discussion through content creation. This article shows how Tumblr facilitates this type of artistry and how one of the artists has had the opportunity to see his art on a popular cartoon, which he was inspired by. Tumblr is often a place to discuss sensitive topics and bring them to the mainstream.
Key Words[]
Citations[]
Alfonso, F. (2013, May 23). The real origins of Tumblr. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.dailydot.com/business/origin-tumblr-anarchaia-projectionist-david-karp/
Barksdale, A. (2015, October 28). 16 Thought-Provoking Social Justice Blogs On Tumblr. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/16-thought-provoking-social-justice-blogs-on-tumblr_562f8638e4b06317990f591d
F, G. (2013, May 20). What is Tumblr? Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2013/05/economist-explains-what-tumblr-yahoo
Rifkin, A. (2013, February 13). Tumblr Is Not What You Think. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://techcrunch.com/2013/02/18/tumblr-is-not-what-you-think/
Top Sites in the United States. (2015). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/US
What is Tumblr? (2015). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://digitalunite.com/guides/social-networking-blogs/blogs/what-tumblr
What is Tumblr? - Definition from WhatIs.com. (20