Social media for scientists: Simple advice on consuming and contributing on SoMe platforms
Channel: Lars Juhl Jensen
Date: 16/10/2023

Simple advice on why you may want to be on social media as a scientist and how to do it. I first give a quick overview the types of social media platforms and how to consume content without it becoming a time sink. I then talk about how to contribute on social media, why you may want to use multiple platforms, and the importance of being a real person on social media. Finally, address the toxic nature of social media and explain why it is less of an issue for scientists, although you may want to avoid certain divisive topics.

0:00 Introduction: why be on SoMe, why visibility matters, and overview
0:47 Major platforms: social networks, photos/videos, blogs/websites, and how to choose
1:37 Be a consumer: finding useful content, SoMe as a filter, and signal-to-noise
2:38 Be a contributor: content creation, content quality, using multiple platforms, and crossposting
3:28 Be a real person: institutional vs. personal accounts and why I prefer the latter
4:19 Avoid toxicity: Twitter and YouTube can be toxic, but scientists are a friendly community