Social media has been popular for about half of my life, with that half being a time where I've used computers and other electronic devices often. The first network that I recall using was MySpace and Tom was my first virtual friend. MySpace "evolved" into Facebook, then Twitter, Instagram, and now Snapchat. While social media is a great tool to kill time and connect with people there are some downsides to it, thus creating a love hate relationship.
Pros
Social media allows you to connect with people from across the globe in a second. I have spoken with people in Tokyo, Singapore, and all over the United States with many tuning into my various social media pages and even "liking" many of the posts on each. I met a good buddy from the south named Dawan and now I give him advice from time to time almost like a brother and we've only ever met through the internet. The world has changed for the better.
Social media has created jobs. With the far reach of the internet, people have been able to advance careers easier and reach a larger audience than they likely would have been able to reach back in 1995. Rappers such as Soulja Boy Tellem, Nicki Minaj, Ab-Soul, and even Pro Era have social media to thank for launching their careers in ways that a rapper from the 1980's or 1990's could not have. Comedians have a new way to get their material heard and jobs such as online marketing have nearly tripled in the past twenty years due to the trend of new and improving social media sites being created.
Social media has created a variety of platforms to get as many users involved as possible. FaceBook and Instagram are widely known, however, there are sites like Soundcloud that get music lovers connected. Periscope allows users to stream live videos to let people into their lives all day every day if they so choose. The opportunities are limitless with social media and there's room for a person from any walk of life to get engaged.
Cons
Social media made getting fast news more important than getting reliable news. It seems that everyone on social media is the new CNN or ESPN, however, there is little to no fact checking. A Twitter handle with 160k followers can pass off false information as being true and no one thinks to dig deeper to truly verify their statements. The people that take the time to be morally sound journalists get the short end of the stick because they can't get out the "right" news fast enough. Credibility has been shot from once "credible" news sources as a result of this new fast citizen journalism.
Social media encourages people to be anti-social. Many people nowadays can sit with friends and never look up from their phone, because they are so glued to these new sites. Some people no longer bother to have real conversations with people and merely text or tweet at one another without ever having a real interaction and having to use words to have a conversation. Kids are obese at alarming rates and during this summer alone there are probably over one million children that hardly left the house and spent countless hours on social media sites instead.
Social media allows for different personalities that many people take on to be displayed and exposes children to serious topics that might be more appropriate for perhaps a young adult. Some people are far more aggressive and bold on social media and can distort the views of themselves on social media. Most people don't have a bunch of money, cars, or women surrounding them at any given time. Social media allows people to give off the persona that such things are in fact happening for them. People that are misinformed get a voice and are able to babble about things they don't know about and essentially make fools of themselves. Violence, relationships, and pornography have become more mainstream and easier to access for children as a result of it.
Overall I'd say social media is great, but there are many people that expose the issues with it as well. I use social media nearly every day so I see things from both sides all the time. Keep social media, monitor your kids that use it.
