Pros and Cons of Social Media Essay Example

Social media has brought joy to its users however, ¨Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse¨. Social Media allows people to interact in ways one could never imagine. It is easy to catch up on someone's life through a simple message on the computer or mobile phone, even email. Social media enables communication for one's personal life and has become a central network for people to communicate for work purposes via email. Social media is also a way to obtain information from others online and share information. A great majority of people have used social media at least once in their life, whether it be Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Discord, Tik Tok etc, anyone who has access is most likely consuming one of those forms of social media. The masterminds behind these infamous media are using their platform to manipulate people which can affect one's identity, relationships with others, and mental health.

Manipulation is the use of means to exploit, control, or otherwise influence others to one’s advantage. The masterminds behind these social media platforms are using manipulation tactics such as using one’s bias against them and spreading false information to exploit and control their users. They give the people what they want to see, whether the information is true or not, which can have an impact on one's identity. Identity is the qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, and/or expressions that characterize a person or group. Social media users  are mainly kids ages 9-16, that is the age where a person really finds themself and their personalities which is crucial to one's identity and development. Kids at that age are easily influenced by others and if they are exposed to such media it can have a big impact on their personality and beliefs. Personality refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. It is important for kids at a young age to be surrounded by role models and those who are presumably good influences, because what kids are exposed to growing up can reflect on their behavior and feelings. One’s beliefs are pivotal to their identity because we use beliefs to help us understand the world around us. A person's beliefs will guide them in their decision making and response to situations. Beliefs are usually formed in childhood and built as a person gets older. Social media holds so much power to form and to shape one's beliefs. Misinformation is detrimental to one's beliefs and through social media can be spread rapidly. During the Covid-19 lockdown rumors were going around about the vaccines and how it's supposedly “a government tool used to spy on people ''. This false information changed what people knew and believed about the vaccine and evidently led to many becoming opposed to receiving it, leaving them and their families vulnerable to the virus.

Social media allows its users to connect with more people in very little time however, social media can also impact relationships by decreasing attention and quality of time spent together with people around like family etc. It is clear to many out there by now that social media can be very addicting. People are becoming so reliant on social media and use it as a way to escape from reality and make themselves feel better which in turn worsens one’s relationships with those around them. False information spread on the internet does not always have to be about heavy topics such as Covid-19, it could also be on topics such as rumors being spread about classmates that may not always be true. Rumors can ruin relationships either it be with the victim, or the one who spread the information.

Social media can be detrimental to one's mental health and their state of mind and can leave permanent or long-term damage to one’s well being. Suicide rates and self harm rates have gotten higher due to cyberbullying through social media, mostly for women. There is substantial evidence that the Internet and social media can influence suicide-related behavior. Such evidence includes an increase of exposure to graphic content as well as the opportunity for cyberbullying to occur. Over the past ten years, cyberbullying has increasingly led to self-harm and suicide. Social media allows people to interact in ways one could never imagine, but it also leaves room for people such as cyber-bullies to terrorize others online. People go on their phones and use social media as a way to escape from reality, cyberbullying which is the act of bullying someone through electronic means (as by posting mean or threatening messages about the person online) destroys that safe place for victims making them feel like there is no other place that they can go. Social media can also affect one’s mental health because of the constant exposure to girls or boys who are above average in terms of appearance. It is common for one to compare themselves to those they think are “better” but for young audiences it could really affect the way they think and develop overtime. People who use social media sometimes face unrealistic beauty standards and many have developed body dysmorphia trying to emulate achievable beauty standards.

Social Media allows people to interact in ways one could never imagine. However most people fail to recognize the negative side of the infamous media. The masterminds behind these media are using their platform to manipulate people which has proven to affect one’s identity, relationships with others, and mental health.