Media Snackers

The inflection point for this topic occurred in late 2007 when Jeremiah Owyang publicly asked whether enthusiasts respected media snackers. He then tagged several Social Media experts—Francine Hardaway, Chris Brogan, Shel Israel, Connie Benson, and Bill Claxton, among others—to continue the conversation. Ultimately, co-author Brian Solis was pinged by Todd Defren. To ascertain its value and potential, Brian thought it might be more helpful to examine what it is and why it exists instead of discussing whether he respected media snacking.

Media snackers are content creators or consumers who read small bits of information, data, or entertainment when, where, and how they want. Many relate this specifically to the Millennials (a.k.a. Generation Y—those born between 1980 and 1991) because, in a sense, they grew up more “connected” than the generations before them. However, it’s not just about the younger generations. Instead, it’s about media in general and how it is carving new channels and creating new vehicles to facilitate conversations, relationships, and sharing by, and for, the people—across every generation and market demographic. The content curators, creators, consumers, and thought leaders who are defining the new social economy, and are building social capital for themselves in the process, are driving micromedia.