Chapter Two
The Rise of Social Media’s Influence
This chapter analyses SM’s influence on users’ decisions and their differences from traditional media such as TV, radio and print. There is also a brief summary of the communication models and an analysis of the different typologies of media highlighted by Professor Innis. In specific, it will explain the difference between the media that promote decentralization and local culture and those that support communication over a distance and promote the spread of message, trade and centralization. These two types of media have been used by different imperialisms in the past in becoming architects of their fortunes.
2.1 Communication Essentials
People communicate to fulfil their needs and, according to Adler & Proctor II (2012), those are:
1. Physical needs. A positive communication is beneficial for wellbeing because it keeps all the intellectual and memory functionalities active, improves the mood, reduces stress and gives the right motivation for the day.
2. Identity needs. Communication is also essential for self-evaluation and for improving personal skills, because it identifies personal weakness. Indeed, through a fair and honest confrontation with others, we can collocate ourselves in the community.
3. Social needs. Communication is also necessary for keeping and developing a social life, which increases life satisfaction and happiness. Interacting with other people increases personal motivation and builds relationships.
4. Practical goals. Communication is fundamental to fulfilling daily activities (e.g. performing a job, negotiating prices, or teaching kids how to ride a bicycle or to drink from a cup).
Aristotle identified one of the first simple and effective models of communication (Aristotle’s model of communication), which is based on the following elements and connections:
Speaker 
Speech Occasion Audience Effect
This model was intended for public speaking, where the key role was occupied by the speaker. It is a one- way communication model and it is based on a message going out to influence an audience (receiver).
Since Aristotle, other communication models were created and elaborated on, and one in particular is widely accepted by social science, is known as the “Shannon–Weaver model of communication”, and is shown in Fig. 4. It was created for data communication and adapted for social communication because it is very effective and adapts very well to other communication processes.
Shannon was an American mathematician, electronic engineer, and cryptographer, and Weaver was an American scientist, mathematician and science administrator. They developed this model to study the communication between two sources (sender and receiver) and spoke for the first time about information source, message, transmitter, signal, channel, noise, receiver, information destination, probability of error, encoding, decoding, information rate, and channel capacity.
Source: Shannon, 1948
Figure 4 – Shannon-Weaver Model of Communication
Using the model above as a basis, more complex ones developed in order to depict communication in a specific context or to explain two-way communications using more elements. The main models are described below:
1) Linear Model of Communication
Social science adopted the essence of Shannon and Weaver's model to use it, for example, in education, organizational analysis and psychology.
The model in Fig. 5 was adapted to these fields, replacing the central part with the “channel” used by the communication (i.e. the medium through which the message passes).
In summary, the linear model moves from one person to another without feedback and includes the following elements:
a) Information source, which creates the message;
b) Transmitter, which converts the message into signals;
c) Channel, which is the medium used by message to reach the target;
d) Receiver, which “decodes” (reconstructs) the message from the signal;
e) Destination, where the message arrives;
f) Noise, which is the external sound that comes between the two subjects involved in the process.
It is possible to define this model with a few main adjectives, such as:
a) Simple, because the model has a few basic elements;
b) Quantifiable, because the transmission data can be quantified;
c) Effective for a one to one interaction, rather for a mass audience;
d) Not suitable for two-way communication;
e) The concept is based on a primary role (sender) and a secondary (or passive) role (receiver).
2) Interactive Model
This models two-way communication and it is based on the linear model process. This means that the message goes from a sender to a receiver and the receiver became a sender for the reverse process.
Compared to the linear model, this supports proper communication because of the return of the communication (also called feedback). Indeed, this model supports the idea of exchanging data or information between two participants but, in contrast, the sender has to