Media Impact On Social Media

Suicide rates have increased in teens over the past few years. Along with suicide rates increasing, mental health of teens in general has been a widely discussed topic. A huge contributor to these issues is social media. Over the past couple of years, teens have been diagnosed with mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression at a much higher rate. These issues are prevalent for teens all over the world. The increase in diagnosis of disorders is largely due to the rise in popularity of many social media platforms.

One of the several political issues America faces today is fake news. Any person can go on the news and will see numerous articles stating how President Trump makes accusations that the news is fake (or at least most of it is). In Macbeth, there are Weird Sisters, and they can be compared to fake

Social media has given the human race an unprecedented amount of access to news and information. However, the validity and vetting of this information is often questionable at best. The emergence of websites such as Breitbart, Occupy Democrats, and TheBlaze have given way to a constant stream of partisan

With the proliferation of technologies, especially the Internet, social networking has become ubiquitous in the modern world. Social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter, etc. are the impetus that is ever facilitating rapid creation and exchange of ideas to promote and aid communication. Humans interact by being social, therefore sociology analyses the changes in the social trend. Understanding the sociological perspective on the effects of social media, we find that the social aspect has changed. Comparing the past and present status of our society, it is obvious that there has been a transformation which all points towards the evolution of social media. Social media has changed our culture and has impacted on the way people meet, interact and share ideas; it has changed the perception of how people should communicate with the society. Social interactions have been defined to be an exchange among individuals with the aim of strengthening the society. Social interaction is building block in every society when people meet and interact; they define rules, systems, and institutions in which they will live by. On the other hand, social media is known as a platform that allows people to network and socialize through applications and websites that have been innovated. Though social media could be used as a useful tool to communicate with friends, family and even with people you do not know, however, researchers show that social media is absolutely harming human's skills to have

The introduction of media has significantly impacted the way candidates campaign during the United States presidential debate cycles. While mainstream media outlets (i.e. televised newscasts, radio broadcasts) have played an important role in providing live coverage of events in which candidates spoke about their platforms, the purpose of the media was completely altered with the introduction of social media, specifically Twitter. While journalism was meant to be an unbiased practice, Twitter and other social media sites have taken on the role of a biased news source, forever changing presidential elections in the process.

As of the most powerful and important position in the world, the President of the United States has a duty and obligation to present the truth to the American people and the rest of the world. But as shown from the 2016 election cycle and current presidency, it appears that the truth can be substituted by “alternative facts”.

Over time the United States has been molded by new technology, and American politics were no exception. Throughout history the political process in the United States has been greatly altered by advancements in technology; mail, radio, and television(elements in a series) have all shaped the way the public sees politicians in monumental ways. Recently a new factor has made its mark on American politics: social media. The use of social media by politicians and citizens has had repercussions that echo throughout the political sphere. The introduction of social media altered the landscape of American politics forever. Now more than ever before, it is harder to find the truth and even easier to hide from

The media can link people to the government by spreading opinions, ideas, or facts about political subjects that could affect policy or behavior for example, “heavy users of social media, relying on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to connect them with more than just friends and family. Eighty-eight percent … said they use Facebook to find news. This reliance on social media has fueled debates about how social media and personalized web searches influence political polarization. At the same time, social media also provides opportunities for people to actively engage in politics,”(Kelsh 1). This example proves the reliance that society and the American people have on the media, including the opinions and bias found in many online

A recent study conducted at Stanford found out that 82 percent of students cannot tell the difference between fake and real news (Crook). This is a major problem because it can affect people’s careers and even sway election results. Fake news occurs when hoax websites report false news. False news stories are reported every day and are being spread all over the internet. This is a huge dilemma in today’s world because “62 percent of the U.S. adults get their majority of news from social media …” (Crook). This type of news spreads so easily because people share outrageous stories without actually reading the story to realize it is false. Former president

In his article “How Social Media is Ruining Politics”, Nicolas Carr argues that the media of today is more “encompassing and controlling than ever before. (Carr 1)” Media can be manipulated in a way that allows a candidate to have a perceived excellent reputation. However, it can also provide the candidate with a disadvantage by misrepresenting their ideas. As James Fallows, author of “ Learning to love the (Shallow, Divisive, Unreliable) New Media”, points out, “If ideas are misrepresented, it becomes easier to lie. (Fallows 4)” Candidates can easily change the context of their message to make it more appealing on a social media platform. this change causes political issues to become an easily overlooked. He concludes that social media is primarily “used to create a warm emotional connection for a candidate rather than keeping the focus on issues that would help our country.(Carr)” In his article, “Beware of Online Filter Bubbles”, Eli Pariser expresses similar concerns to Carr. He concedes that popular internet mediums like Yahoo and Google “filter search results to fit the needs and intrests of the user. (Pariser)” The websites “filter in what users like and filter out what they dislike. (Pariser)” His concern is that “online media personalization causes important issues to be overlooked easily. (Pariser)” His research provides a

It is imperative for people to be knowledgeable on the sources they are looking at. Hearing or receiving fake news can largely impede one’s decision in a negative way. YouTube celebrity Tom Mabe pranked his wife with fake news and it ended up backfiring on him. Tom Mabe got a fake lottery ticket for his wife and played a fake news cast in order to prank his wife into believing that she won the lottery. The news caster reveled the winning numbers and when his wife heard the numbers, she was ecstatic. She was so ecstatic about the lottery prize, thinking she had won, that she told him she wanted to file for divorce because she has the money to “pay for the legal fees and be able to purchase another home and [their] kids will not have to worry” (Mabe). Tom Mabe was shocked and confused not realizing she had felt that way. It then turned out that she saw the cameras and turned the prank back on him attempting to lie about wanting a divorce. The example of Tom Mabe was to show how fake news can change one’s perspective or thought, ultimately resulting in a more often than none, a negative outcome or

Yet in reality, contrary to common belief this does not fix the issue at all. Research has shown that once the inaccurate information is viewed by the public on a news media, the original information is assimilated into the viewers perceptions and held as a belief no matter if the news organization states a certain portion was inaccurate or false. This is especially true in a certain situation. A research experiment conducted by Brendon Nyhan and Jason Reifler at the University of Michigan and the Georgia State University created Fake Newspaper articles about issues about polarizing political issues. These articles were all written in a manner that would confirm a widespread misconception about political issues. Once the false articles were

Constant controversy, immaturity at its finest, an American flag, a little blue birdy logo, a verified checkmark, more than 44 million followers, little elementary school arguments with Kim-Jong-un; the list goes on. If you are still unaware of what I am referring to, it is the twitter account of the current President of the United States (POTUS), Donald J. Trump. This man is one of the largest and most active gatekeepers in the realm of social media. Generally, one would assume information posted in a tweet from the POTUS would undoubtedly be accurate. How could that ever not be a reputable source? Why even bother to do some of your own research? Unfortunately, this is not the reality we live in; not everything presented to us through news, government or media is true and thus, everything you hear today requires a conduction of your own research prior to accepting anything as true. To be completely honest, if you did not know I was referring to the POTUS, you are probably in a much better position than his 44 million followers, as you have successfully managed to avoid one of the many gatekeepers/media outlets whose employed methods entail the plaguing that come with the concept post-truth politics. Though, you must keep in mind that is just one of the many outlets, as this concept is currently taking place all over the world. You, along with the rest of the population are essentially forcibly subjected to fake news every single day of your waking life whether you choose to believe it or not. On September 10, 2016, The Economist published an article titled “The Post Truth World: Yes, I’d lie to you.” The article claims the reality of the current political world; a reality The Economist suggests the general population is ignorant of. The article is severely opinionated and due to the multitude of reasons provided in support of their argument, many of which substantiated with an abundance of factual evidence, the authors were very convincing in their contention that post-truth politics are to be with us for many years to come unless changes are made immediately.

As it appears the fake news is often written and published under extremely inflammatory, or false headlines to capture public interest in order to obtain on financial gains. False reports ran rampant on social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, and

Social media has become a prominent part of life for many young people today. Most people engage with social media without stopping to think of its influence on our lives, whether positive or negative. What will the long term effects of today's social media use be for our youth? Social media has revolutionised how most of us communicate, especially regarding young people, even in the most remote Indigenous communities in Australia youth culture is being reshaped through digital technologies. Young people are provided with a range of positive opportunities to maintain social connections and support via online social networks as well as learning and participating with a multitude of interests. Along with these opportunities there are also risks associated with social media such as social isolation or loss of privacy as well as cyberbullying and self-esteem pressures. We need to develop the opportunities offered by digital and social media to promote learning and wellbeing for our youth that is inclusive of young people’s input and ideas.