At the age of 14, JoLynn Willliams ’12 of Lake Charles, Illinois, began her rise to unofficial rank of social media connoisseur. Throughout the years, JoLynn studied various social media, ranking the pros and cons of each, the strength of the communication allowed, and how people use social media.


JoLynn Williams '12, far left, works with other students at
the Saint Mary's television station, SMC-TV.

During the College’s Bold Beauty Conference on April 28, 2011, JoLynn, a communication studies major, used her vast knowledge of social media as a jumping off point for her research project on which particular media users self disclose. She closely compared Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. Facebook is the most detailed site with the most personal information shared and Twitter is the most simple, a 140-character blog, which forces users such as JoLynn to be more creative, witty, and concise.

However, JoLynn finds Tumblr, a microblogging platform, to be the most interesting. For her Bold Beauty project, she used this quote that describes the site: “If blogs are journals, then tumbleblogs are scrapbooks.” The brevity of Tumbler is what she finds so interesting about the site. “It’s really not about meeting new people or staying in touch with friends,” she said. “It’s about expressing yourself and sharing what’s on your mind.”

JoLynn has one basic principle when using any social media: Always consider privacy the top priority. “There are privacy settings on each site. Sometimes young people my age forget that what you put on the Internet can be accessed by anyone,” said JoLynn. “As a rule I never post anything I wouldn’t want my parents to see. In fact, I am friends with my parents on Facebook!”

JoLynn would like to move her passion for social media into a career. This summer she has an advertising internship working on the marketing team at the Legends of Notre Dame Nightclub, located just outside the university. “Aside from social media, I love music,” JoLynn said. “Ideally, I’d like to get a job in club promotions working for a music venue after graduation.”

JoLynn also has a passion for Saint Mary’s College. “During my time here I’ve definitely come out of my shell,” she said. “I think it was a combination of working for Campus Ministry, working for Legends, and being a communication studies major. In both my jobs, I spend a lot of time working with other students. In my major I’m required to give a lot of speeches and presentations. Both work and school have challenged me to leave my comfort zone. I feel more assertive than I ever have in my entire life."