The frequently used term social media encompasses "offerings based on digitally networked technologies that enable people to access information of all kinds and to establish and/or maintain social relationships on this basis". This definition by Taddicken and Schmidt illustrates the role of social media for the information society and its importance for social action and interpersonal communication.
Social media differ from traditional mass media such as television, radio or newspapers in that they dissolve the sender-receiver principle and enable non-linear communication and networking with others. In this context, social media users are not only to be understood as recipients of mediated information, but also as producers of content.
Source: Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation, 2024
https://www.bidt.digital/glossar/soziale-medien/