The 2016 Presidential election was one of the most vicious and intense elections that the United States has ever seen but, it is over and Donald J. Trump is the 45th President Elect. That has been a very controversial reality for the nation these past few weeks. Social media sites exploded during the election and the days following the election result. According to Forbes website, "On [November 8th] alone, there were 115.3 million people on Facebook worldwide that generated 716.3 million likes, posts, comments and shares related to the election. There were 643 million views of election-related videos. And, over 10 million people in the U.S. shared on Facebook that they [had] voted." According to a USA Today article published on November 17th, 2016, 62% of U.S. adults get their news from Facebook. Drew Margolin, a communications professor at Cornell University said, "whether Facebook wants to accept it or not, it became as influential as a T.V. network or national newspaper. It can't hide the influence it has." This influence leads to social media users being misinformed and arguing irrelevant topics because users are subject to fake news stories and articles on a daily basis and many are most likely not fact-checking these types of sites . According to CBS NEWS, the presidential election was the number one most talked about event in 2015. A year before it even happened, social media was already laying the foundation for a major divide.
It is apparent that Democrats and Republicans are divided on many major issues. According to Pew Research Center, Trump supporters think that illegal immigration, terrorism, job opportunities for the American working-class, crime, job opportunities for all Americans, and drug addiction are the biggest problems facing this nation today. While Clinton supporters believe that the conditions of roads, bridges, and infrastructure, affordability of a college education, sexism, racism, the gap between the poor and the rich, gun violence, and climate change were the biggest problems Americans face today. Pew Research Center also stated that "relatively few voters thought the country had made progress on most issues since 2008," although Trump supporters had a mostly negative view of the last eight years, Clinton supporters had mixed feelings on the progress of America. The divide deepened over the course of the presidential campaign. Clinton's campaign slogan focused on being "Stronger Together", while Trump's maintained the focus of "Make America Great Again"; even their catch-phrases seemed to divide the masses.
Several Facebook users reached out to express their views of what Facebook was like during the Presidential election of 2016. Bryant expressed, "I did my best to ignore anything about the election through Facebook. I rarely read any articles or watched any videos because I recognize Big Media as one of the biggest flaws and hindrances in this country. I never really believe anything I read because I know that any [statistic] can be made up or manipulated to be true. I'm just tired of propaganda and the media fueling hate and discrimination for ratings and money."
Justin stated, "I like how Zuckerberg is trying to deny that Facebook is a "Media" outlet right now. His company, as well as other major online entities, are being called out for allowing fake news sources through their companies that are the most widely used avenues to quickly view news feeds. It shows the stupidity of the people in this country to believe everything you see without any research of your own...it was a hostile environment on Social Media, which fueled the most ignorant people in the country to manifest it into the protests and graffiti all over the country as well as spread the "Fake News" all over Facebook to subconsciously recruit people for both sides of the spectrum."
Mallory said, "I wouldn't say it was hostile but it was not as enjoyable. I get on Facebook to escape from the day, get some laughs, maybe read a few articles. For me it was mostly annoying memes that filled my timeline. [I] went as far as [deleting] the app from my phone a few times just to get away from it all."
Josh said, "I think it was more hostile than normal on Social Media. I think it had a lot to do with how the debates were handled, or lack thereof. If our Presidential candidates just argue and disrespect each other on live TV, why would the people watching think it wasn't okay. There attitudes and actions led to the attitudes of their supporters, which was poor."
Bri stated, "I definitely thought it was hostile! I watched two family members fight and threaten to beat each other up over a Facebook post! ...I also saw lots of hateful comments from complete strangers on some of those news articles. People would call people names for simply posting their opinion. Some even wished harm on others. It was so disgusting and it came from both sides!"
Branden thought, "People didn't listen to understand, they listened to reply."
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These view points solidify the idea that many Americans avoided Facebook during the election, or at least had a high disdain for political arguments. This suggests that social Media does not encourage political movements, but rather hinders them due to people verbally attacking one another's viewpoints instead of providing a healthy atmosphere for a political debate to occur. Are users allowing the divide to happen, or are the developers of websites such as Facebook to blame for allowing fake news articles and misinformation to circulate? Has Freedom of Speech crossed a line for defamatory and slanderous information to become the "facts" that so many form into arguments against a candidate or a cause? The President Elect gave a speech shortly after the final results of the election were tabulated and asked for unity, but how can we unify under such a brutal campaign that focused on segregating America?
The answer? Question everything. Question your government, your candidates, your laws. Question your news sources, your radio shows, and your media. Question why you uphold the ideals that you do. Question why your neighbor upholds the ideals that they do. Do your research and have sources to back up your claims. Develop a sense of empathy towards others and you will quickly realize that you are not the only person in the world who has opinions and morals. Let us all come together in the wake of the earthquake that has rocked our nation to its core. Let us rejoice in diversity, differences, and love. The President does not dictate how people treat one another, the people do.
