Love Story on Snapchat

Kelley McLellan 

5 / 7 / 16

Blog #3: Love Story on Snapchat 

  In today’s society the times have changed in terms of social media and online dating. Letters aren’t written anymore to significant others or family members. Instead people are meeting and staying in touch with people through Facebook, Instagram and even Snapchat. Social media is playing a huge factor in terms of meeting new people and staying in contact with one another. This generation of college students and millennials are turning to social media for meeting people, connecting with old friends, and starting new relationships. Snapchat especially has had a major impact on college students meeting and connecting with one another. 

     Recently there has been a story circulating on Snapchat that has taken the social media world by surprise. The last week of April, Abby Diamond, a University of Wisconsin student had filmed herself in the school’s library saying: “'Guy wearing the Vikings jersey on the UW snap story, I’m seriously in love with you. Find me.’” (Mclaughlin, 2016) The student, also known as Reed Bjork, or “Vikings Fan” had not only responded to this girl but their story went viral on Snapchat and has captured national attention.The college students used this social media to talk to one another and finally met up that same night. They met up and the moment was captured on Snapchat, along with other people celebrating that they finally met. Everyone was following these two student’s story on this social media site. 

Snapchat is becoming more widely used by users because it is an easy way to communicate with one another face-to-face. You can view other stories from around the whole that are going viral, just like this story of the two college students who wanted to meet each other. Social media in this day and age makes it easy for people to communicate and meet other people differently then they would generations ago. “Apps curate our choices, make it easier to ask out a stranger, and take a lot of the risk (and cold sweats) out of first dates.” (Klienenberg, 2016) It is true that apps make it easier for people to ask out a stranger because they are able to be behind the screen and that is where some people feel most comfortable. People risk a lot on social media though. Diamond asked for Bjork to find her because she was in love with him. She could have faced rejection because this was going viral and people around the campus saw that. 

People from the University of Wisconsin started following along with this love story and wanted to get involved and know the end results. The campus Snapchat story had a mixture of videos and pictures of the two college students, and other students who were showing their support for their classmates. Male friends were telling Bjork to go out and find this girl and not sit around and do nothing. People were encouraging them to find one another and everyone just soaked up this story. 

On Snapchat you can send in a snap to a story that is around you but you aren’t guaranteed it will air and be seen by everyone. Diamond had said, “I didn’t think my snap [to Reed] would even get posted,” she added. “I hadn’t found the right lighting, or taken my hair down, or taken my glasses off. I just opened my phone and recorded my snap in one try.” (Mclaughlin, 2016) She wasn’t aware that it was going to be such a viral snap, but she also noted that she was very happy it went viral. She was able to use this type of social media to see someone and then want to meet up with him. Once they met up they exchanged numbers and then are able to work off of a different media source. 

This touches upon the ‘hierarchy of communication’ that we talked about in class. People will use one source, normally Facebook, then go to IM, and then exchange numbers. This was somewhat similar on how the couple met. They used Snapchat as their main source of social media then exchanged numbers. This ‘hierarchy of communication’ is a way that people connect with others in moderation. Social media is important in this aspect because people will use these apps to connect with people and become friends with them. 

Social media is becoming the new norm for how people are meeting and dating. “Online dating sites are Internet tools designed to facilitate "connections" between users who are seeking romantic and/or sexual partners.” (FuUick, 2013) People, especially these two college students are using this Snapchat app to make a connection. Without this type of media they wouldn’t have saw each other and met up that same night. People wouldn’t have been able to follow this love story without constant updates and what not. The dating world has clearly shifted from writing love letters to sending snaps. Everything now happens online and on our phones. This generation is turning towards this media because it is easier to communicate between people and it is the new norm. 

Today’s society has completely changed in terms of how people interact with one another and how people meet others. Social media has become a place where it is okay to meet others and interact with them on a regular bases. For these two college students, Snapchat was what brought the two together. Abby Diamond’s one snap went viral and from then on people wanted to know what happened with these two lovebirds. It is amazing how fast word can get out on social media. This generation of college students are using social media to meet new people and engage with old friends. Snapchat especially has become a place where people can view stories from around the world to get information and updates on what is going on in the world. 

Works Cited

FuUick, Melonie. ""Gendering" the Self in Online Dating Discourse." (2013): 545-62. Canadian Journal of Communication. Web. 8 May 2016.

Klinenberg, Erid. “Let’s Talk About Love In The App Age (Video).” Popular Science. 1 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 May 2016. 

Mclaughlin, Kelly. “‘We Went from Zero to a Thousand in 24 Hours’: University of Wisconsin Snapchat Couple Shares What’s Happened since Their Meet-cute after Their App Love Story Captured Hearts around the Country.” Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 2016. Web. 07 May 2016.