I agree with Valeria Maltoni that Social Media is the Modern Version of the Telephone and Social Network, themselves, can enable a conversation, but they aren't the conversation, anymore than an Art Studio is Art - it's a place one paints, not the painting itself.
"…What social media does is simply allow you to do one thing: communicate. That's it. Social media is not the conversation. It's the room in which you hold the conversation. It still comes down to saying, doing, or producing something valuable for your customer. Companies which forget this will simply throw money down the social media hole. Companies that get it will find social media a valuable tool — if they they are prepared to stick it out and learn how it works."
In fact, no one would say that a college institution is "Education", it's a place where higher education takes place.
Having said that, I'm finding its not easy to design social networks - any more than being an Architect is easy. I noticed that when I worked in my Chelsea office at IBM (where I just left, yesterday) it was easy to talk to people whereas when I was working in White Plains, years ago, it was on a large floor with cubicles and I talked to almost no one, unless it was deliberate.
NO one will argue that setting up an environment and tools that encourage conversations (overcoming time and space differentials) will generate conversations … they will, provided there is "something" to talk about. That's why you need a couple of real enthusiasts in any community - to create conversations in the first place.
