We live in a massive world. Humans are spread out all over the globe. On a very basic and natural level some of us are separated from others by a huge distance and in some cases by the oceans between us. Naturally this makes it impossible for us to connect with someone across the globe. But thanks to the level of technology and advancement this world is at, most of us have smartphones and a working wireless internet connection. With the help of all this, we are all connected with each other. Via the internet there is no part of the world we can not connect to while sitting in our bedrooms on our bed. If someone told us that this would be possible 50 years ago, we would call them stupid. And it would have been a justified response as the internet did not exist.
All this is majorly possible with the help of social media. Social media is an internet based platform which helps people as well as communities all over the world connect with each other via texting, posting, commenting etc. Some of the popular social media sites are facebook, instagram, twitter, snapchat, etc.
In the past decade social media has taken over the world with ease. With the start of myspace to facebook to the latest most popular platform snapchat, the world is now socially connected.
Social media has not only helped people connect all over the world, but it has given people an open opportunity to express themselves, it has given people careers, has helped spread important messages etc.
While all of this seems great on paper, social media also has major upsetting downsides.
With giving a common man an open platform to share his views, opinions on a certain topic freely, social media has also given a hefty amount of power into the hands of an everyday man. As a world famous quote has said “With great power comes great responsibility”. While some people have used this power responsibly and have worked for the greater good of the world, some people have used this power to spread hate, pass on private information and commit crimes like harassment, cyberbullying etc. The amount of reported cyber crime via social media has been increasing at an alarming rate every year. While precautions as well as certain rules and restrictions have been set into place to prevent such activities, these crimes and scams continue to happen. Also in some countries like India, the cyber security department is not as strong because of which some crimes often go unnoticed.
While causing harm over the internet and helping people connect online, social media has also made people disconnect offline. Often people rather than meeting up and talking in person connect on social media and talk through that. Which would be fine if it did not hide the true nature of someone, allow manipulation and thought out schemes.
Social media can be a plus as well as an effective negative for our generation depending on how we use it. If you use social media, in your hands lies a great power. A post on social media has a potential to reach millions and billions of people online. So what you do with this reach is in your hands. Use social media wisely and carefully and make sure to also connect with people in a natural way rather than just sticking to online.
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