Social media can both negatively and positively impact the user

Scrolling through her social media feed, sophomore Savannah Greathouse fixates on the negativity she sees on her screen, and slowly but surely, feels upset. She is disappointed in people’s tendency to hide behind their screen in order to ridicule others.  

In a world full of ever-changing technology, opportunity arises for a faster spread of ideas, publicity, rumors and other information. According to journalism.org, in a survey done by Pew Research Center, 62 percent of U.S. adults reported that they get their news from social media platforms. Another 18 percent get their news often, but not all the time, on social media. This percentage reveals that social media directly affects everyday situations and has a presence in many Americans’ daily lives. While this new technology may inform, social media’s presence introduces a controversial issue regarding its benefit or detriment.

English teacher Shauna Rinearson  said social media can be beneficial in the classroom setting.

“For me, as a teacher, one of the pros is easy access to communication with my students for classroom reminders or helpful hints and strategies for assignments,” Rinearson said.

Social media does a great job of interconnecting the modern world. Not only does it connect students with teachers, it also connects people in general with old and new friends, celebrities, political figures, as well as complete strangers. Science and math teacher Neal Doolin said social media allows him to stay updated with past friends.

“I think things like Facebook are a great way to stay in touch, and kind of up to date, with what people are doing after you maybe go your own separate ways,” math and Doolin said.

While social media may be a good way to stay in touch through platforms such as Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter, where information is displayed in a matter of seconds, there is a point of downfall. According to Psychologyinaction.org, social media has been linked to a new phenomenon known as fear of missing out, as well as social anxiety, emotional distress, problems regarding body image and depression.

“People tend to only post the good things about what’s going on in their life on social media, and then, if that’s all you see, it’s easy to compare everything that’s going on in your own life to just the good stuff you see going on in other people’s,” Doolin said.

However, as technology grows, the normality relating to strictly positive posts changes. People have taken the anonymous aspect of social media to create accounts solely for the purpose of being negative, such as a Twitter account named @ifeellike. This negativity can also escalate to cyberbullying.

“One of the cons of social media is, certainly, people feel free to be cruel to one another on social media because they’re protected by anonymity or they can be protected by anonymity,” Rinearson said.

In the midst of it all, people’s faults are in their carelessness. As seen through Twitter or Facebook, social media users have begun portraying an ignorance to realizing the gravity of serious issues and have opted for an easier route of making serious matters into jokes instead.

“We take more serious topics more light-hearted then we should,” Greathouse said.

Although this cannot be said of all people, social media has given some the option to hide behind their screens and voice opinions they would not in person. This rise in dissemination of opinion can have positive and negative outcomes. It gives individuals the opportunity to share hurtful, cruel or insensitive viewpoints in regards to others. On the other hand, it gives a voice to shy introverts or soft-spoken individuals to share their ideas, make a difference and  contribute to a better world, economy, political system, etc.

Senior Finn Murphy said she sees another opportunity social media creates.

“If you want to use [social media] to promote an activity or something that you’re passionate about, you can use it for that,” Murphy said.

While social media can be linked with a lot of negativity, its positive aspects shouldn’t be overlooked or discredited. It isn’t a secret that social media has contributed to a more interconnected society. Social media’s access for anyone with the means to use it has made way for international interactions via platforms such as Linkedin, as well as served as a place for advertising industries to thrive.  

“I think a pro of social media is just how easy it is to connect with people,” Murphy said.

In order to fix social media’s connotation or tendency to be negative, and fixate it on the possible positive outcomes, change needs to occur. Two solutions could be taken, the first being prevention and the second being rest. Prevention could include ridding social media feeds of negative accounts or people, or unfollowing accounts that constantly share opinions or outlooks on situations that one may disagree with or find upsetting. If users create a positive, supporting and fun atmosphere on social media for themselves, the negativity gets filtered out.

“I think by cleansing my own social media, like the people I see on social media, I think it’s a positive experience for me,” Doolin said.

The other solution, rest, encourages taking a break from social media and internet relationships or finding a balance between real life and virtual. In doing this, the user is given the opportunity to see the world around them.

“I think that teenagers need to foster their interpersonal skills — their face-to-face conversations — so that there’s a balance between their online relationships and their actual face-to-face relationships,” Rinearson said.

The heart of the issue with social media lies in how it’s used. At the end of the day, social media can be negative and can cause negative effects on the mind, the body and relationships, but it can also be positive and inspire its users to be the best version of themselves or simply put a smile on their face. Social media is a platform where self-interpretation lies. Social media is what the user makes of it.

“Everyone has their own account, so I feel like you can shape that to be how you want,” Greathouse said. “So, if you’re wanting to put a negative input onto it, then you can do that, or you can continue to be positive. You can shape it how you feel.”