Social Media Views
Social media has been created for people to connect to others nationwide, share and post moments, and discover the world in many different ways through others. Social media, in my eyes, is a benefit to the world as far as connecting, business purposes, social and even national experiences, which can really build on a person's behavior and outlook on the world. The con, or negative influence, people see it having is because of how certain users use it, not social media itself. The intention of social media is not to hinder us as a society but to connect us further. This being said, not everyone has the same view or opinion as I do. Some may think that it is the worst thing that has came to society, and some may think it is very resourceful and beneficial. To make it more diverse, adults and teens believe both points individually.
Social Media Supporters
Adults Pro Social Media
Adults are now seeing how much society has grown and progressed as far as technology. They even gravitate to the benefits that social media can actually have. Ms. Price, English Teacher at Franklin High School, states that social media has a really good way of connecting the world. But the negative effect is your choice, which is the digital footprint. In reality, it is not social media itself, but the individual user that determines what happens with social media. She made another point saying that you, as the user, can do things that are not a benefit to you at all and think it is not wrong, but later they — the businesses, colleges, companies observing you — will find it and will catch up with you. "Students' social media and digital footprint can sometimes play a role in the admissions process," said Christine Brown (Singernov "They Loved Your GPA, Then Saw Your Tweets"). She is practically promoting social media, in the sense of having some type of positive mark you have made that will have the colleges or companies viewing you as more useful or important.
Teens Pro Social Media
As we all know, almost 80 to 90 percent of teens positively think about social media. They think it is a great way to connect with friends, share their moments, and even find fame in doing it. Samuel, devoted user of Instagram, says that social media is a very useful source, for connecting and even breaking out of your shell and meeting new people. Knowing that most people find their friends on social media and meeting them later, it sends a message that people can actually have friends and make them easier. It is a harmful and friendly way to meet new people.
Social Media Disapprovals
Adults Con Social Media
Adults, in the eyes of teenagers, consider social media to be nothing but a hindrance. And in reality, there are many adults with that negative opinion on social media. Three out of five adults will tell you that social media is just a thing that will waste your time. Mr. Meiklejohn, after dealing with a student who misused social media, stated that they would have wondered about the judgement of someone who spends their time on their mobile phone and makes such awful remarks (Singernov "They Loved Your GPA, Then Saw Your Tweets"). Honestly speaking, social media has been made to not only connect and share moments, but to also gives users the ability to see those moments by others and actually give your feedback. Of course, with this feature given, people can give positive feedback, and also they can give negative feedback, both to any extent. Of course, those users can be blocked, but that is another story. They feel that the only thing teens will use social media for is to downgrade others, and in the process, themselves. Like Mr. Moore, social studies teacher at Franklin High School, says, "Social Media is just brainwashing your mind!".
Teens Con Social Media
You guessed it! Yes, ironically, there are teens that vote against social media. There are some that are against it and just do not use it. We even have teens that do not approve or positively think about social media and still use it. Twitter user, Daniel Lasecki stated that social media looks like it will come crashing down on top of itself. He elaborates, saying how Twitter is losing its value, and how Instagram is actually copying Snapchat. This coming from a user of social media does not make the statement hypocritical, but it makes it more believable knowing that he has actually went through the experience of social media itself. He even makes another point in an analogy about people. Daniel says that something new will pop up and we will all flock to it like birds to breadcrumbs. It is true, considering that every trend that comes along, we go to it and attract to it very easily.
Summary
Social media is social media, which is all it is. It is what we as a society makes it. We can be mature and make social media a very beneficial resource, or we can be foolish and make social media the reason we will not go far in life.
