
Bing! A notification from your phone wakes you up in the morning. The sun is shining and birds are singing outside your window. But before your day can begin, you go through your morning routine of updating yourself on what transpired overnight in the world of social media. Drake has released yet another surprise album (or “playlist” as he calls it now), your ex-girlfriend somehow managed to share every video she could find of golden retrievers swimming in pools, and your best friend is texting you wondering why he woke up in the Burger King parking lot with his car engine still running. Before you can feel bad for him, you open your Instagram account to another selfie of Taylor Swift with her pet cat and everything is right in the world for a moment. Finally, you roll out of bed, crank up the volume on your favorite morning Spotify playlist, and hop into the shower. This is just another morning in the golden age of social media. 

Over time, social media has evolved into a marketplace of ideas and has become the epicenter of human interaction in our society. Social media has made friendship more accessible, more entertaining, and easier to maintain. It has provided a creative outlet for writers, filmmakers, musicians, gamers and photographers. Moreover, it has assisted in sparking mass social change and bringing awareness to controversial subjects. Social media is not all sunshine and daisies, however. While it can be an effective tool for creativity and communication, there are some risks involved as well. Large amounts of usage can lead to a reliance on the technology. Many believe it can develop into an addiction, providing a higher risk of low self-esteem, depression, diminished social skills, and a lack of interpersonal communication. The strongest critics of social media argue that it is not “real” communication, and makes it more difficult for people to develop quality relationships. Social media and other technology of today also play host to dangers such as cyberbullying and sexting, especially for younger users. But, when used wisely and responsibly, social media is a tool unlike any other and is a necessity to our generation.

Thanks to sites like Friendster, LinkedIn and MySpace, social media first achieved popularity in the early 2000s. On these platforms, users sought out relationships, business connections, and music or music videos aligning with their personal tastes. Then, in 2006, Facebook entered the scene and completely took over the social networking world. The site was so popular it gained 100 million active users just 2 years after going public, and is now a multi-billion-dollar business that serves as the primary social media site of the world. Gaining popularity shortly after Facebook was Twitter, where users share 140 character “tweets” in which they can express their thoughts and opinions on any subject of their choosing. Twitter opened the door for mobile apps and the ability to access these sites on smart phones, which has become the primary medium for the success of social media. Eventually, a new social media site or app was becoming popular every week. Instagram, Snapchat, Vine and Tumblr all became widely popular to the public by providing their own unique experiences to their users. It is currently estimated that there are 2.34 billion social media users worldwide and that 78% of Americans find themselves on social media. 

Social media has achieved global popularity for many reasons. Primarily among them is that it has completely altered and transformed how communication is done. Zeynep Tufecki, a columnist from The Atlantic, reiterates this by claiming that “Social media is enhancing human connectivity as people can converse in ways that were once not possible” (Tufecki). Distance and time zones mean nothing now thanks to Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, and instant messaging.  Social networking sites also make it easier for teenagers to find communities of other kids and people like them who share similar interests and hobbies. There are even online-support groups, such as The Buddy Project, available for teenagers facing depression or other mental illnesses. Sites like this provide people suffering from mental illnesses with a community of individuals facing similar experiences who can assist them in overcoming the challenges they face in everyday life. There are similar communities across the web and other social media platforms dedicated to music lovers, gamers, sports fanatics, political followers, and many more. 

Above all else, social media has made communicating fun. Every friend group has a group-chat full of inside jokes, “dank memes”, tears, and other shared experiences that allow people to grow closer together. Teens send each other pictures and videos through Snapchat every day to create “snapstreaks”, and compete to see who can snapchat with one another for the most amount of consecutive days. These methods are a far cry from the days of old. They may not match the anticipation and intimacy associated with handwritten letters, but they do provide users with the communication they desire, and the creativity through which it is performed is enhanced constantly. Suren Ramasubbu, the co-founder and CEO of Mobicip.com, a parental control and online filtering system, states “Given that our brains are wired to connect, it seems logical to expect that social networks, by enabling sharing, could cause a self-reinforcing sense of psychological satisfaction” (Ramasubbu). Our brains naturally seek the level of communication that social media, and social media alone, fulfills. Without this technology, the world would be lacking something it desperately needs.

In addition to serving as a platform for enhanced communication, social media also provides an entire world of creativity and self-expression that is entirely accessible right at the fingertips of those who utilize it. Whatever passion or interest one may have, there is undoubtedly a social media platform to match it.  Instagram and vsco are the most popular outlets for photo sharing, managing to bring out the photographer in every one of its 400 million-plus users. Pinterest, despite having a fourth of the users of Instagram, centers itself around fashion and arts and crafts. Tumblr, an extremely unique site, allows users to blog anonymously while customizing their blog pages to the smallest detail, incorporating different themes and aesthetics that appeal to their senses. Music streaming services such as SoundCloud and Spotify provide listeners with the ability to listen to their favorite artists, create customized playlists, and share them with their friends. Although it has been discontinued, Vine was once an area that challenged users to get creative as possible with videos that were six seconds or less. 

However, none of these social networking sites even hold a candle to YouTube. A space that some consider to be the mecca of creativity, YouTube offers its users music videos, entertainment, gaming, comedy, film, cosmetics, and countless other forms of self-expression through a video medium. PewDiePie, the most popular YouTuber based on subscriber count, has nearly 55 million loyal and devoted subscribers who watch his content daily. For reference, the population of South Africa is just over 55 million. When discussing this trend, Clive Thompson states “…the online world offers kids remarkable opportunities to become literate and creative because young people can now publish ideas not just to their friends, but to the world” (Thompson). Social networking platforms such as YouTube are not just areas where kids procrastinate, make dank memes and watch videos of cats playing on keyboards. Those things do happen, but these websites are also motivating the next generation of adults to explore the creativity within themselves. Whatever idea or concept a person has stuck in their brain, they now have the tools necessary to produce and distribute that content amongst their friends and other people like them.

Furthermore, social media has become the primary platform used to seek out social change and awareness. 5 years ago, the “Kony 2012” video introduced people to Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony and the Invisible Children. The video received 120 million views in five days, raised $32 million for its cause and became the most viral video in internet history. It took Justin Bieber more than ten times that length to receive 100 million views. Granted, the group who created the video has received some serious backlash over the years. But if you ask anyone who had a computer in 2012 about the video, they can tell you all about. Next came the ALS ice bucket challenge in 2014. Videos of people dumping buckets of ice over their heads and challenging their friends to do the same spread across the internet like wildfire. Supporters raised over $115 million for Lou Gehrig’s disease. That money eventually helped to discover NEK1, one of the most common genes that contribute to the disease. Social media also played a vital role in social movements such as the Syrian Civil War, Black Lives Matter, and Boston Strong. This technology has allowed us to watch over each other and has assisted in fighting against evil causes. Without it, we would be much worse off.

While social media has positively impacted society in many ways, there are some people who are very critical of it. These doubters largely consist of parents who are concerned about safety from issues such as cyberbullying and sexting. These issues mostly affect teenagers, and there have been many instances in which teenagers have received enough cyberbullying to lead them into depression, and even suicide. It is believed to be a popular phenomenon because those who are doing the bullying are not doing so face-to-face, meaning they do not have to see the reactions of the person they are bullying or directly deal with the consequences as it happens. Lemoyne College professor Krystine Batcho argues that kids “…probably wouldn’t engage in bullying activity if they were face-to-face because of the consequences if they were caught in person by authority figures,” (Graham). When teens cyberbully, they show a disregard for the consequences that come with their actions. When discussing these issues, Dr. Michael S. Broder states “The bullying, the things that happen that have unintended consequences, sexting in conversations over social media, and sending nude pictures around, are all things that are permanent once online...Kids don’t seem to think long term when they do those kinds of things” (Graham). Potential employers, colleges, and the government all have access to the information you share online. When this information goes public, it will always be there for everyone to see. The people partaking in these negative social media practices do not understand this concept. Those who do not utilize a decent amount of discretion when online, regardless of what they may be doing on the internet, may find themselves in trouble down the road if they have controversial subject matter on their social media accounts. 

While cyberbullying and sexting are both very real issues, most teens are intelligent and cautious enough to avoid exposing themselves to those dangers. These things do happen. And when they do, it tends to be younger people who deal with the resulting consequences. But, it is not as if social media is a toxic wasteland rampant with bullies and promiscuous photographs. In fact, cyberbullying and sexting occur much more infrequently than social media critics would care to admit. A Pew Research study from 2013 claimed that “…only 15% of teens said someone had been mean or cruel to them online in the last 12 months…and… only 4% of teenagers had sent a ‘sext’ and only 15% had received one…” (Thompson). With those numbers, only a fraction of a segment of all social media users are affected by cyberbullying and sexting. These are issues that can easily be avoided by parental supervision and by educating young people on safe social media practices.

In addition to being thought of as dangerous, many critics believe social media is highly addictive. Studies have shown that 5 to 10% of internet users are unable to control how much time they spend on the internet, and brain scans on these individuals show impairments similar to those in brain scans of alcoholics and drug addicts. When social media users receive “likes” on their photos or tweets, pleasure receptors on their brain activate. These same receptors are also associated with orgasms, motivation and love. Social media can absolutely be addicting when not used in moderation. The key to avoiding relying on the technology is to be aware of how often it is being used, and for what purpose. In the opinion of social media marketing expert Waqar Hassan, “There is no need for you to eliminate the use of social media networks from your life as long as you don’t develop an addiction to it” (Hassan). Assuming people are capable of managing their time on social media effectively and do not become reliant on it, there is no issue with enjoying the pleasures of social media and the internet. The key to avoiding reliance on this technology is to be aware of how often you are using it, and for what purpose. It may be a monumental achievement in human interaction, but it is not the only thing the world has to offer.

Moreover, social media detractors believe that it makes “real” communication nonexistent. Professor Krystine Batcho argues that “The greater fear of what’s perhaps taking place is that kids are not learning how to behave in a face-to-face conversation,” (Graham). Communication and conversation is undoubtedly different when done in person rather than through social media. What emotions and feelings we evoke through tone and facial expressions go unnoticed when spoken words are turned into words on a screen. It is up to the reader to interpret the messages being sent to them and the meaning behind every word or phrase. In that sense, social media can make communication difficult. Yet, the communication is still there. Not all forms of communication must take place in person, and not all people learn social skills from one-on-one conversation. Just because people choose to interact with their friends through a different medium does not constitute their interaction as “fake” or something less than authentic. For those who engaged in that conversation, it is still a very real thing that they experienced, albeit in a non-traditional fashion.

Newsflash: social media is communication. A large reason why social media has achieved such popularity globally is because of how unique and entertaining it allows communication to be. Sociologist Barry Wellman said it best when he claimed “Online communication — email, instant messaging, chat rooms, etc. — does not replace more traditional offline forms of contact — face-to-face and telephone. Instead, it adds on to them, increasing the overall volume of contact” (Masket). Social media has not made us incapable of holding conversations. If anything, people are talking and communicating now more than ever. Everyone is guilty of sneaking a text or two during class or family dinners, a habit that should be avoided. But very seldom do groups of people get together only to text other people and stare mindlessly into their phone screens. Through social media, teens have revolutionized how communication is defined. Zeynep Tufecki from The Atlantic builds upon this concept when she states that “…when teenagers attempt to break out of this antisocial, unnatural, and bizarre prison…by connecting to *each other* through social media, we ‘tsk-tsk’ them on how they don’t know how to actually talk…” (Tufecki). Rather than demonizing social media as dangerous, addicting and illegitimate, perhaps we should take some time to admire how much it has contributed to our society. Yes, it has some potentially harmful sides to it, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

It is unquestionable that social media has an enormous impact on our society. Although it does pose some threats to our safety and health, when used properly it can be an outstanding tool for those who are using it. Cyberbullying and sexting find themselves very low on the scale of dangerous things in the world, as internet and social media users have learned how to act properly and responsibly online. Social media also can become addicting, but not when it is used in moderation and used wisely. Ultimately, social media has such a large impact on our society because it can provide a fun and unique way for people of all different cultures and backgrounds to communicate. Individuals also find themselves able to express their creativity and artistic sides through social media unlike ever before. Finally, social media has provided a medium through which any amount of cultural change can be possible. Assuming users can practice moderation and be aware of its potential dangers, the positives far outweigh the negatives social media contains. As time passes, communication will continue to evolve. It is possible that social networks will become a thing of the past, and that some other technology will revolutionize how we interact with one another. But, for now, social media is here to stay. Social media has redefined communication, and has brought us closer together in the process. We should take pride in being defined as “The Social Media Generation”. Embrace this technology and what it has to offer. Embrace the human connection.
