In this essay we are going to talk about the social media. With humankind, running at its full speed towards technology, the future full of technically developed humans is not far. Technology has provided us with a lot of gifts, the most famous of them is social media.
Short Essay on social media Boon or Bane
Social media has made the world smaller. It has brought people from different ends closer to each other. That sounds like a blessing! But is it really a blessing?
Social media: boon or bane
Social media just like any other tech-driven platform has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. You can neither completely accept nor completely disregard it.
This is probably the reason for people having such conflicting opinions on the usage of social media. To understand this deeper, let’s look into some advantages and disadvantages social media has to offer.
Advantages of social media
Being a technologically advanced platform, social media has its own perks! Let’s look into some of them-
Communication with far living friends and families
Imagine you have to move to a different country for your work purposes. Leaving your family behind may be bothering you. You miss them a lot. But thanks to social media, now it isn’t that tough to connect with them.
Communication is one factor that social media has its biggest hold on. With communication facilities growing every day, people have found it extremely easy to contact friends and family even though they are far away from each other. They can talk for hours and have an update on each other’s life. There are so many long-distance relationships that have survived and thrived due to social media.
Getting to know people from different parts of the world
Social media doesn’t just let you communicate with your close people. But it even makes you close to strangers. You can get to know people from different parts of the world due to social media.
There are so many beautiful relationships of love and friendship that are evoked through social media every day. You don’t really have to worry about what they think about you as you are basically a stranger to them and they have no link with your surroundings but somewhere you can still connect to their minds and hearts!
A good platform for one’s promotion
This is probably one of the biggest advantages that social media holds over people or more specifically businesses. Promotion and marketing of products and events have become a lot easier due to social media.
Anyone can promote their talent and the whole world will see it. There are a lot of brands and companies that use social media to reach a wider audience.
A way of income
Digital marketing is spreading rapidly but so is people’s way of money. Social media is not simply stuck to entertainment anymore. There are various people who earn from it. They could be an artist or an influencer or even a social media manager. There are too many job opportunities!
A way to be aware of other cultures
Social media has played a big factor in knowing different parts of the world and their cultures. There are many educational videos that social media provides but even in entertainment videos, we at times get a glimpse of how things work there.
Therefore, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that social media has indeed made our world smaller!
Disadvantages of social media
Social media does have many perks but it has many disadvantages too! This technology has made our life easier no doubt, but it also has damaged us in some ways. Let’s look into some cons of this platform.
Isolated us from people nearby
Technology has gotten people near but they have made people who are near to each other, far away. I have seen it myself. When I go to a gathering or even to a friendly hangout, I no longer see people indulging themselves in each other and paying full attention to each other’s talks. It’s like half of their attention is constantly on pinging someone else or snapping some pictures to post on social media.
This makes people disconnected from each other. They rarely talk or share things. This ultimately creates a sense of barrier in their bond.
The hate and trolling
Social media, over the years, has become a really big platform to promote oneself and their talent. However, it has also given other people the right to judge and criticise it.
Criticising is not an issue. But sometimes people take this criticism to a whole different level. Due to their anonymity, they gain the power to comment negatively on anyone and get away with it. They don’t realise the impact it has on others. Public hating and trolling have become very common nowadays but their effects are still painful and harsh to be handled by a person on whom it is directed.
Addiction
Social media has a way of keeping people entertained but this source of entertainment has slowly started to become an addiction.
Many young people are getting addicted to social media. It’s like they can’t even survive without looking at it. Yes! You read it right! The situation is that bad. It has become like a drug to them. You often see such people continuously trying to reach out to their phones. Life without it seems unimaginable to them. They often disagree with them being addicted but their behaviour screams their addiction!
The frauds and scams
Social media has become a great platform for promoting one’s talent. But it has also subjected itself to the risks of frauds and scams. There are many scammers who scam people on social media on an everyday basis. Though there are several rules and regulations surrounding it, they are still not that strict and efficient enough for people to be scared of.
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Nothing is private!
With social media usage increasing every day, nothing is private anymore. People post everything about their daily life and those who don’t also have a chance of their information getting leaked. Any video going viral can at times pose a threat to a person’s life if it is popular for the wrong reasons. With the world becoming more and more involved in social media platforms, no information is safe and private anymore.
Negative effect on children and adolescents
Social media has affected many people negatively. But its effect is mostly seen in the youth and children.
No child is unaware of social media nowadays. They are not just very much aware but trained enough to use it like experts. It can affect them in a very negative way as they are not mature enough to handle its cons.
They are bound to become addicted to it. They may begin losing focus on their studies and tasks. They may lose their precious playing time in indulging themselves in the virtual world. This could even have negative effects on their physical and mental health.
What’s the solution?
As mentioned earlier, social media has its own set of pros and cons which makes them a blessing as well as a curse. Totally accepting them with their negative effects is not correct. However, disregarding it completely isn’t that accurate either! Then what should one do?
Draw a barrier! Be aware of how to use social media and to what extent. Social media is a very powerful weapon hence, we have to focus on how to develop its advantages and reduce its disadvantages.
Be aware and make others aware of its negative repercussions before using these platforms. Keep it away from small kids. Have a limited time for using this platform. Don’t spend your whole day in it. Make sure that your rest of the day is more productive. If you feel you are getting addicted to it, then stay away from social media for a few days. Don’t promote hate and trolling.
These are just a few steps that one could take to protect themselves from the harmful claws of social media and use it as a boon.
Conclusion
I strongly believe that every single thing present in an organism’s surroundings has a positive and negative impact on it. Just because it holds some disadvantage you cannot just ban it!
Similar is the case with technology, especially social media. It is a very strong tool for the future. However, it has some negative attributes too! But that doesn’t mean you have to completely isolate it from yourself.
These social media platforms, if used appropriately can change many people’s lives for the better. However, while handling this, we should also be aware of the power and disadvantages it holds!
Social media platforms are great for showcasing your talents but they can make you a subject of trolling. Social media is a way to get closer to strangers and connect with them but it can also isolate you from your nearby people.
Then what should one do? Be aware! Don’t overuse these platforms. Try to keep yourself productive. Do meet new people on social media, but make sure you are giving time to people who are near you and care for you. Don’t hesitate to showcase your talents on social platforms but never troll others or let yourself feel depressed due to some Anonymous people. After all, social media is a pretty cool thing! Use it to your benefit but never be too dependent on it!!