Social media affecting society

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Despite social media’s growing popularity, it remains a major influencer on the general public. Social media is an interactive outlet where multiple opinions can be heard and controversial images can be uploaded. Due to this, social media has both the capability of leaving a positive and negative effect on society.

Social media does, in fact, serve as a positive outlet in many circumstances. For one, social media has become a major marketing platform. As time increases, the public receives fewer ads from the radio, television, magazines, and newspapers and more so from online. Furthermore, social media disseminates information out to the public at the fastest rate. Through social media, it is also possible to spread the word to a wide range of people — people who are not normally in reach. Due to social media, we are able to communicate with others, whether it is for the achievement of a certain objective or simply for pleasure.

However, with the good comes the bad. Throughout the years, people have come to rely heavily upon technology. With this constant reach of the cell phone to browse through Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat comes an addiction that most teens are blind to realizing. In such a technologically advanced world, it is harder than it may seem to take a break from social media.

Social media has the ability to put people at risk. People are given the opportunity to communicate with people from all over the world. But, with this amazing opportunity comes a chance of endangerment. While this potential threat is generally targeted towards younger children, everyone is at a risk when putting information out on social media. With this increase in technology, people can find out details about someone by the information they post.

In addition, social media has a major influence on the public. Specifically, celebrities have a large following which means that they have a large number of people’s opinions they can sway. This is most often seen in times of elections, debates, movements, and more.

Furthermore, seen most on Instagram, models may take up most of your feed. In many cases, young girls have voiced that they become insecure upon seeing perfect bodies and effortlessly beautiful faces on their feed. This instillation of beauty leads many adolescents to question their worth. Even though this is not the verified Instagramers’ fault, it is a reoccurring issue. In many cases these picture-perfect models are touched up and don’t truly look good in every picture as they may make it seem — which the public lacks to understand.

Over all, in a world where we are given the life-changing opportunity to communicate, inspire, voice ideas, and market through social media, we are also depriving ourselves of privacy and safety while risking addiction and insecurity.