New Media and Digital Heritage

This study raises awareness about people's social media habits, sharing purposes, digital identity, and post-mortem digital legacy management concepts. In this context, digital legacy awareness in new media was analyzed using a qualitative method through in-depth interviews with participants who use new media and live in Turkey. Data obtained from semi-structured interviews with thirty-five participants were evaluated using descriptive analysis methods. The findings show that participants use social media primarily for information gathering, archiving, and communication purposes, and prefer sharing temporary content (story) over permanent posts. It is emphasized that social media does not reflect reality, affects individual psychology, and that privacy boundaries are determined by personal values. The majority of participants are not aware of the concept of digital heritage and prefer to have their accounts closed after death. This study is one of the pioneering qualitative research studies examining the relationship between digital heritage and social media use in the field of communication in Turkey. In this context, it contributes to the discipline of communication on the topics of digital heritage, digital identity, privacy, and digital mortality; and highlights the need to address the phenomenon of digital heritage in the context of social awareness in Turkey.