“Ding….ding…ding…ding, ding, ding, ding”, ah music to my ears…….NOT. That’s the sound of a phone notification. Now and days that’s all you hear, the symphony of the phones. You are probably wondering what I am talking about, right? I’m talking about social media. OOOOOH, social media. What’s so bad about it? A lot of people have asked that same question. The truth is that using social media is not always harmful, it has its benefits. It helps people communicate with family members, from great distances. Many people gain many friends and draw closer to them. Despite that, it also makes people illiterate. Using it often leads to addiction, lack of sleep. Cases of cyberbullying and invasion of one’s private information, are very common. Even though there are many pros, there is an indefinite amount of cons.
“Wow, Karen is so big, the last time I saw her, she was so tiny.” “Tina looks like she is having fun in Mexico.” Thanks to social media, many people are closer to their families and friends. According to one survey, “39% of respondents reported feeling closer to their friends because of social media, while 26% of the sample felt that they had more friends because of social media.”
Through pictures, families can see one another. Through social media, you can meet people from different backgrounds. Cool, right? This may seem harmless but, in the end, it may cause problems.
“How r u?” “ikr” “kk” “gtg” “gn” “brb” U knw, thx 2 socl med a lot of ppl r illiterate. Y, u ask? This is because of abbreviations. Many people instead of just clearly writing out the word, chose to use the abbreviated version or slang word. As you can clearly see in the first three sentences. It’s gibberish! Unfortunately, because of this many people are unable to speak or write properly. An examination found, “53% of participants said social media sites had changed their behavior, while 51% of these said the change had been negative.”
51% of people have had negative behavioral effects. This may include addiction, depression, and anxiety. Recent studies show, “63% of American Facebook users log on to the site daily, while 40% of users log on multiple times a day.”
Frequent use of social media leads to addiction, which causes sleep deprivation. This may cause a decline in academic performance and may take a toll on your body. Not only that but, it’s the perfect playground for cyberbullies. It’s tragic to say but researchers found, “95% of teenagers who use social media have witnessed forms of cyberbullying on social networking sites and 33% have been victims of cyberbullying.” Many adolescents have fallen into depression and have even resulted in committing suicide. Many people have even lost their identities. With just one click, strangers have access to all our personal information. These are just a few of the many negative effects that social media has on our lives.
“Hey, Warren! How are you? Oh, wait a minute, I have to check this new post.” Social media deprives people of social experiences. Due to abbreviations in text messages or posts, many people have become illiterate. 51% of people have had negative behavioral changes. This may include depression and addiction. The constant use of social media leads to addiction, which means lack of sleep. Body and academic performances may decrease, as well. Many adolescents about 95%, have witnessed cyberbullying and 33%, have been victims. As a result, many have fallen into depression and have, even in some cases committed suicide. Identities have even been stolen, thanks to the easy access. Social media is not all that bad. Many people feel like they have gained more friends and are closer to them. Social media has a lot of pros, with even more cons. The question each one of us should ask ourselves is, “Is social media beneficial to me, or is it causing me more harm?” It’s up to each one of us to decide if we are going to use or not use social media but, we need to remember to make the right decision.
