Reasons and mediators in the development and communication of personal digital stories

The expansion of access to devices, as well as the production and publication options in social networks requires a broader definition of the traditional notion of personal digital storytelling. To get a deeper understanding of these practices in the group of adolescents, the objective of this article is to analyze what are the reasons that direct the publications of personal stories and what kind of filters, agents and consequences are articulated in these stories. To do this, the most qualitative part of an investigation on teenagers’ internet publication guidelines is synthesized. Specifically, the results of a semi-structured interview with 12 adolescents between 12 and 20 years are shown. The answers show that the interviewees’ perspective on what a digital story is goes beyond the format and varies depending on the network where it is published and the type of content. Thus, the emphasis and motivation of the publication has shifted from the digital - which has been incorporated with something normal and not differential - towards the personal, focusing the publications on the daily life of young people. An extension and refinement of the public-private dichotomy has been identified, maintaining general privacy guidelines above the dissemination of publications. As for filters, publications are preceded by the widespread use of image modification tools. Finally, the answers show the influence of personal agents, mostly friends and brothers, and technology agents, which determine the relationship between the type of story and the network where it is published.