Mobile Public Memory

Abstract

This article will look at the impact that mobile technologies have had on the ability of people to document their everyday lives. What is important to note about this documentation is that it has become a public display of events and experiences via mediated content. This documentation becomes more interesting to observe when it is put in context of how people can now record their travels. This "public memory" of private travel is assisted via mobile technologies with applications designed to record locations through Global Positioning System data and mediated content. After the documentation, the consumption of this content is conducted through social media services and other public outlets as opposed to the traditional means of showing where people have traveled via postcards, slides, and souvenirs. Through a mixed-method study, this process of documentation is analyzed via the thematic dichotomies that emerged throughout the course of surveys and interviews. This article will explore this contrast between the digital and physical through an analysis of the "traditional tourist" versus the "archiver of experiences." Finally, the impact of this documentation will be framed in the context of mobile communication.