We spoke with the Zimbabwean Social Media Director of the infamous IG hotbed The Shade Room on the world of media and how African women are centering themselves in it.
Social media, according to researchers, came into fruition too, “facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks.” As humans do, we took it and ran. Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and the rest of the App store’s children have bred community engagement out of the wazoo, invigorating a newly formed global community where everyone is involved in everyone else’s business. The Shade Room, and its more than 27 Million “roomies” is one such platform that has perfected its recipe. The IG account turned global media powerhouse has built itself what seems like an irreplaceable spot within the hearts and minds of the internet’s most avid scrollers. According to the site, they are run for and by their audience, or “Roomies” as they affectionately refer to one another. The “Roomies” according to the platform’s site are referred to as such, “because they ‘live’ in The Shade Room, many of them visit our website/pages every day! Also, our style of delivering the story is similar to the way a friend or roommate would deliver the story to you.” Since its inception in 2014, The Shade Room has shared over 200,000+ opinions, accusations, and more across its multiple platforms. For some, the site’s history of controversy, including the likes of American Rapper and personality Cardi B’s complaints about the nature of the content being posted about her as well as being referred to as “a vile corner of the internet”, is enough to shun the shady space altogether. But, for others, it’s a legitimate community space. Read more
Comments