When Twitter rose to fame, when Facebook came about so that people could complain endlessly about how they had coffee spilt on them on their way to work, I couldn’t handle it. Suddenly, the world was becoming more and more narcissistic as everyone thrives to post heavily edited ‘selfies’ on Instagram, and I couldn’t stand it. If anything, the only thing social media seemed to be doing was making people less social – isn’t that ironic?

 But when I thought about it – I mean really thought about it, I realised the efficiency of platforms like Twitter as a tool. It means that things that the media used to get away with is suddenly at the forefront. Take moments where the media would push something off as an ‘accident’ or wrap the truth in wrapping paper because the black man was highly believed to ‘have a gun’ when in fact there was no chance that he had a gun – with social media these things are questioned. Young people are more plugged in than ever – and for every nonsensical story that they’re go crazy over, there’s an actual story that they are giving focus to. We’re beginning to do something that no officials want us to do – questioning the facts against the fabrication, through the use of such simple social media platforms.

So social media has become a conditioning device. It means that young people who don’t always check the news, or watch the news can be overtly exposed to the problems that face the world and can be free to discuss and come up with their own solutions, instead of what the media with their bias’ and sweeping things under the rug (for lack of better terms.)

On another note, social media is great for marketing. In a fast growing technological world it is hard to make
a splash in the huge ocean of websites. Therefore social media is a great way for people to connect and make connections like constellations joining together.

Therefore, I’ve shifted my focus to not focusing on the petty arguments and cryptic celebrity tweets, and seeing social media in a better light, in which social media can actually influence the world.
To end, I think now would be a good time to paraphrase a quote I once read, something along the liens of how ‘the media is made first to make money, and second to give you the news’ which is an interesting quote to remember.

Comment below what you think of social media platforms. Do you like them or not? I’d love to hear your views.