Viewpoints

Society Needs Social Media

Modern day society is based heavily on social media and its influence on people. People all over the world —students, teachers, parents, and more —use social media daily and in various ways. Social media is an incredible form of communication between friends and family. People that live across the country, or even the world, are now at the tip of our fingers. Maintaining relationships with these people is now simplified immensely. The constant flow of ideas between people teaches individuals more about themselves and introduces them to new ideas. People can now discover more about their interests and passions while surfing the internet by surrounding themselves with so many new ideas. Especially during challenging times like these, where maintaining a social distance is necessary, communication through social media is of great importance and becoming increasingly prominent in the lives of many. Celebrating birthdays, holidays, or even bar mitzvahs over video meetings on Zoom has become a social “norm”. This, to me, is a very, very special thing. When people felt deprived of socialization during this global pandemic, social media was there to fill a void. Sure, communication through a computer is not always preferable, but it is safest during these times. Without the prevalent use of the technology to remain in contact, people would lose touch and miss special milestones, among other things. I am sure I am not the only one who has gone almost a year without seeing my grandparents. With not much to do, our weekly FaceTime calls are a great motivation during the week and highlight of the week for both them and me. For them our moments in life whether big or small are things that they look forward to. Along with this, communication platforms like Zoom stepped up to assist in the transformation to online learning. Working in cohorts at school, students are able to experience class and learn lessons thoroughly, no matter where they are. Academic assistance is more targeted towards the student and can be even more personal than prior to these changes. Furthermore, teachers record videos to instruct students that are online. These videos can be watched and rewatched by either cohort to clarify what was learned, help complete the homework, or even study for an upcoming test. Not to mention, having a snow day, or a day out sick is now more productive thanks to online learning. Another way that social media is helping strengthen society is the multitude of resources that have been made available to the majority of individuals online. Doing research on anything from history to sports, there are hundreds of websites or databases to choose from. With the election just behind us, there were so many different resources online to not only educate yourself, but to learn about the situation live. Information about the coronavirus and research being conducted is all over the internet. It is extremely easy to educate oneself on any topic because of the abundance of information. When doing research for a school project, even if it is extremely specific, it feels like the internet is able to cater to your needs. Websites have information about everything and can help you in multiple ways at a time. Social media is great for society in the way that it can work to promote good causes. When scrolling through Facebook or Instagram, there are so many charitable organizations that people donate to on a daily basis. Whether it is something personal, or something that a person is passionate about, so many different causes are targeted to online audiences in order to gain support. It is so easy to contribute money to these organizations if one is able to, or simply take part in sharing them with others. Social media is the main form of advertisement for many companies. Companies use commercials, ads, and other online platforms to promote their products. This benefits their income and their popularity immensely. There are many popular creators on multiple different platforms that promote products from a variety of companies. Seeing their opinion on the products, and being a “credible” and “trustworthy” source, influences a lot of people to invest in said products. Overall, it’s evident that social media has an indelible and essential place in society, benefitting the world around us.

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