The Relationship of Social Media and News
When presented with this project and asked to explore a topic there were many different things we learned about throughout the chapters that stuck out to me. Ultimately, when I began exploring what research topic I was going to look into, I was drawn to the recent influx in the use of social media for news and how that is affecting society today.
I completed this project by using real world examples to explore how social media is taking the news world by storm. I looked into a research study completed by the Pew Research Group that compiled information on how many people use social media, in general, to get some kind of news. This study also explored what ages are most likely to look at social media for news, what apps are used most often for news, and more. Overall, from this study I was able to come to the conclusion that the younger generation is definitely more drawn to receiving their news from social media. With this information and more from my research, I decided to look more into the pros and cons of this new phenomenon in order to create a solid answer to my research question.
One thing I learned about myself when completing this project is that I am more supportive of technology and social media than I expected myself to be. I am very aware that there is a lot of unreliability present when searching social media for news but, through my research and real life examples, social media news can be used as a useful tool when searching mindfully. It is inevitable that with the ongoing change and growth in technology and social media that people will be receiving some sort of news from social media. We see this on apps such as TikTok where people are able to share first hand stories on topics that are extremely relevant from around the world. Overall, if you approach social media with awareness and background knowledge, it can be extremely helpful and informative.
I think the biggest question that still sits with me is, are there further precautions we can take to make sure the news our younger generation is receiving is truthful and reliable. It is important to approach news in general with an open mind but also with an understanding that not everything you will be receiving is completely unbiased and accurate, especially on social media. Today, we do have filters and ways to monitor what information is put out on social media but, fake news is still able to be released to the public.
Annotated Bibliography
Martin, N. (2024, February 20). How social media has changed how we consume news. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolemartin1/2018/11/30/how-social-media-has-changed-how-we-consume-news/?sh=1f56b9483c3c
This article covers the shift in how social media has now become some people’s main or first source of news and staying up to date with what is going on in the world. I chose this article because I felt that the idea that some people go to social media for news is an extremely controversial yet real topic that needs to be discussed.
Burns, G., Caro, M., & Reger, R. (2022, February 9). Journalists give thumbs down to social media. Local News Initiative. https://localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu/posts/2022/02/09/medill-social-media-survey/
This article discusses how, from a journalists perspective, the control that social media has over the delivery of news is hurting their business greatly. I chose this article as I feel that this further proves how much control, whether it be beneficial or not, that social media has on what and how news is given to the public.
MediLexicon International. (n.d.-a). How does sharing news on social media affect us?. Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/sharing-news-on-social-media-makes-us-think-we-know-more-than-we-do
This article talks about the effects social media has on society in relation to the news as well as our behavior as a whole. I chose this article to see a new perspective and new information on this topic.
BreakingNews. (2023, May 26). The impact of social media on news consumption: Navigating the information age. Medium. https://medium.com/@BreakingNews0_/the-impact-of-social-media-on-news-consumption-navigating-the-information-age-993341c807c2
This article dives deeper into different tips and things to keep in mind when navigating the news through social media. I chose this article because I think with the new mix between social media and news, it is important to know how to correctly use them to get the most accurate information.
Infield, T. (2020, November 16). Americans who get news mainly on social media are less knowledgeable and less engaged. The Pew Charitable Trusts. https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/trust/archive/fall-2020/americans-who-get-news-mainly-on-social-media-are-less-knowledgeable-and-less-engaged
This article takes a more negative approach on the recent growth in the use of social media for news. I chose this article because I liked how it explores data on the demographic of people that tend to go to social media rather than typical news sources.
Lee, S. K., Lindsey, N. J., & Kim, K. S. (2017). The effects of news consumption via social media and news information overload on perceptions of journalistic norms and practices. Computers in Human Behavior, 75, 254–263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.05.007
This academic journal explores the effect that the use of social media for news had on society. I chose this academic journal because I liked how it discussed both positives and negatives as well as talking about the overconsumption of news from social media.
Hale, Z. (2023, June 20). All too easy: Spreading information through social media — the Arkansas Journal of Social Change and Public Service — Ua Little Rock. The Arkansas Journal of Social Change and Public Service. https://ualr.edu/socialchange/2017/03/01/blog-riddle-social-media/
This article talked about the new concept of the spread of information in general through social media and the effects this has. I chose this article as I felt this topic is important to have an understanding on when looking further into the specific spread of news.
Rocha, Y. M., de Moura, G. A., Desidério, G. A., de Oliveira, C. H., Lourenço, F. D., & de Figueiredo Nicolete, L. D. (2021, October 9). The impact of fake news on social media and its influence on health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review. Zeitschrift fur Gesundheitswissenschaften = Journal of public health. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8502082/
This article explores the use of social media to spread fake news to the public and how easily that can be accomplished. This article uses the specific spread of information during the COVID 19 pandemic and how social media was used. I chose this article because I liked how it gave a specific example of when social media was used to spread fake news.
Kelly, H. (2023, November 15). How Americans get their news now — the Washington post. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/15/news-trends-social/
This article looks into the shift from paper news to online news in society and the effects this will have. I chose this article because I wanted to see a comparison and view into the shift from when people would get paper news to now.
Chayka, K. (2023, October 18). How social media abdicated responsibility for the news. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/how-social-media-abdicated-responsibility-for-the-news
This article shows the different ways in which people can get an inside view on real world issues on apps such as Twitter and TikTok. This article used examples such as when Russia invaded Ukraine and how people coined this as the first “TikTok war” as people were able to get first hand information from around the world on what was occurring.
