Does Facebook Making You Mean?

SUMMARY- Lauren Tarshis in the article, Is Facebook Making You Mean? published in September 5, 2011 addresses the topic of social media and asserts that it can have an affect on how we act towards one another, online and in the real world. In this article, Tarshis gives an example of how social media affects our behavior. In this example with Anna and Maya, one person comments on a photo based on the comments of others, which hurt the person who posted it initially. When the picture was first posted, the comments were nice, but after a while, when one person said something insulting or mean, so did others. Some did this because the others were doing it and did not think it was that serious because it was joking. But, it did end up hurting the

As mentioned above the world we live is more connected then ever before. There is websites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram where ones thoughts, opinions, photos and daily life are instantly shared with hundreds of people across the web. My daughters Facebook page, as well as those her friends are filled with pictures also know as “selfies” and questions posted to friends such as, To Be Honest posts. When one posts this question on their “wall”, the idea is to have people write a comment about you “honestly”. Most of the replies are “I don’t really know you but your really pretty” or “I think you’re nice”. Another site that is particularly disturbing is the website RateMe.com where the person posts a picture of themselves and then allows random people to rate them hot or

On the contrary, social media is known as the utmost ways to communicate with others through precise emotional signs. The online communication takes various signals away. For example one of the signals is, over the phone, one can hear the change in a person’s tone, or the ominous/menacing pause that sends a message for one to back off. But, the jokes and snide comments aren’t the only problem, there is also a hostile behavior. An incident, was when Devon, a thirteen year old, asserted that a friend would claim that she spread out rumors about him. Devon even claimed that the boy is a quiet adolescent, but throughout the posts he would express himself by capitalize letters and punctuated by endless exclamation marks, the young teenager claimed she felt as in her friend was screaming in her face. Sometimes kids act differently on behind the screen meaning when being on a social website such as Facebook because they feel more secure to behave like that on a computer and not in person. One feels the powerful behind the computer screen and do not realize the actions they make towards the other

Is the threat of bullying a real threat to kids today? Bullying has been a threat for a long time in schools and adding the new advances in technology such as cell phones, twitter and facebook bullying is now being done online and school learning is being affected. Schools should have the power to limit students’ online speech because the percent of boys and girls being cyberbullied is raising, teachers teaching ability is being affected, and students learning in class is being affected. One reason schools should have the power to limit their students online speech is cyberbullying is now a problem in the United States. The Cyberbullying Research Center posted statistics in February 2010 saying 16.6% of males between the ages of 10-18 have been cyberbullied and 25.1% of females ages between 10-18 have also been cyberbullied (Doc A).

To prevent bullying and negative interactions, our youth needs to be trained on how to communicate effectively online. The article “Is Facebook Making You Mean?” states that

What is truth on the Internet and who is real? At 15, saying hello on Instagram will haunt me forever. I have been in some sticky situations, but haven't we all? What I have been through, I would not wish this upon on anybody even my worst enemies. I wish someone had informed me about the potential dangers of a conversation over social media. This is an issue for my generation. It became difficult to reclaim my identity and I realized the danger of social media.

It seen that every day you turn on the news you see someone died of cyber bullying. If you didn’t get a Facebook you would have died. You shouldn’t make what other people say people hurt you it’s what you do or say that makes you mean. Social media such as Facebook and Instagram is a good thing for kids to use. Facebook isn’t making kids meaner because kids can find whole communities online where they feel comfortable. Rude comments and insensitive jokes have always been part of the middle school and adult world. Some kids may not like talking face to face they may like it better if they talk on the computer.

A person “can just post something nasty… instead of risking an unpleasant confrontation face to face” (Banks 14-15). Different psychological studies show that when there is a conflict and people try to fix the problem, face to face, it is often resolved. Usually when the person being demeaning or harsh sees the other person becoming emotional, they back down; with communicating online, a person’s reactions are not seen, so there is no mental filter. They do not see or hear that what they are saying can be hurtful so they continue with it (Kang 58-61). To make matters worse, apps and social media sites are being created that are completely anonymous. These apps create an atmosphere in which people can say anything they want to another person and not receive any punishment. Because of technology, more people are becoming victims of cyberbullying by not only people they know, but people they do not know. About “nine of ten teen users said they have witnessed ‘mean or cruel’ actions aimed at peers online” and very few people were reprimanded for their behavior (Kang 49-50). There are no set restrictions as to what can be posted. Although some sites and apps claim to have age restrictions, or places where one could ‘report’ or ‘flag’ posts, these are hardly ever enforced or used (Kang 46-47, 67-68). Technology has taken away the human filter and the online ones; without these, bullies will just continue to bully.

Bullying has been around since the beginning of time. Parents may remember when they were kids and the bully would pick on them or their friends by stealing lunch money or just getting beat up, and that was the end of it. The victims remember the hurt, frustration, and sadness it caused. However, these days, bullying is not just happening on the playground or at the bus stop, it is happening on the Internet and on cell phones, making it possible to bully a child 24 hours a day with multiple bullies and thousands of kids watching. Cyberbullying follows children nonstop and into the safety of their house. Sometimes kids are afraid to inform their parents about the cyberbullying that they will think its there fault. Or that their parents will call the bullies parents or other parents, making the bullying worse. However, the effect and pain that comes from cyberbullying is real. People underestimate cyberbullying, just because it is happening online and not in person. Cyberbullying can lead to many different factors like drinking, and drugs, poor grades, depression, eating disorders. Many students have even taken their own lives because of another student saying something to them online. Cyberbullying has been taking place a lot more in middle and high schools because of the increased usage of social media networks and technology. Cyberbullying is worse and more harmful than traditional bullying.

When there is such a rise in social media, people are able to say what they want because they feel safer than they would in person, which can lead to a rise in cyber-bullying.

Is cyberbullying an old problem with a new disguise? Bullying in the real world has been around for a seemingly endless amount of time. Due to the rise of technology in society today, bullying in the cyber world, also known as cyberbullying, has erupted. Cyberbullying can be defined as using technology, such as the Internet, social media, and text messages, to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person (Hirsch). According to 11 Facts About Cyberbullying, nearly eighty-three percent of teens believe bullying online is easier to get away with than bullying in person. This shows that cyberbullies use online networks to camouflage themselves from reality. Cyberbullying is emotionally abusive to the victim’s mental health because the scars imprinted from the cruel remarks sent through text messages and posted throughout social media are bound to forever impact one's life.

Bullying comes in many different forms, physical, mental, verbal, cyber relational. But the most common type of bullying is cyber bullying. Bullying is identified as a rude or hurtful action that is repeatedly acted upon another thing. In the article ‘Bullying Statistics’ it states, “About 42 percent of kids have been bullied while online with one in four being verbally attacked more than once.” This shows that too many kids have been bullied, just online.

There is a lot of bullying that goes on in this world, a majority of it being cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is a constant problem with young kids on social media. Cyberbullying is a risk for anyone, “Cyberbullying is deliberately using digital media to communicate false, embarrassing, or hostile information about another person. It is the most common online risk for all teens and is a peer-to-peer risk” (AAP). Nonetheless, bullying is always going to happen and cyberbullying allows it to happen

Facebook, a social networking website, has changed the way people communicate with each other. A social networking website is an online platform that allows users to create a public profile and interact with other users on the website. Facebook has even changed our most personal and private conversations and how they are conducted around the world. Since the internet’s birth in 1983, this trend of online communication has been growing. Created in 2004, now registered with more than one billion participants, Facebook’s user numbers surpass even the top four social networking websites combined. According to Wikipedia statistics, Instagram has 300 million registered users, LinkedIn has 200 million users, Classmates.com has 50 million users, and Flickr has 32 million registered users. To be further convinced of the claim that Facebook indeed changes the way we communicate, you would only need to create your own Facebook account and start participating in their social networking experience. Technology and internet usage is fused into every aspect of our society including the style of communication. The launch of Facebook in 2006 also enabled other devices such as touch phones, interactive tablets, and even advanced cars with their own networking capabilities starting in 2007. Facebook is a multibillion-dollar company and is highly recognized for connecting more people than other networks. Facebook’s long-term success can be attributed to providing entertainment, world news, and

For the past decade or so there has been a considerable shift in the way we communicate with each other; instead of speaking face-to-face, we prefer to stay in touch by way of a Facebook post or Tweet. Social media dominates our life whether we’re using it, or not. However, not all online dissonance has been healthy and civil. The internet has seen a rise in the number of trolls and predators that lurk the dark corners of the Internet. Threats, and heinous insults flood media networks like Reddit and Snapchat. Online predators who fling insults are enamored by the internet’s alluring anonymity and can’t give it up. Like Christine Rosen says in her article called, “In the Beginning Was the Word,” “technology has introduced new words, changed the meaning of others, and has even introduced new forms of language and communication” (230). The evolutionary trend and prevalence of people intentionally offending others online has led to a