Social Media and Society
In recent years, social media has been more prevalent than ever with billions of users across the world. With social media’s popularity, its influence has been large and has impact on society through a multitude of effects. Dr. Phillipa Collin, Kitty Rahilly, Ingrid Richardson, and Amanda Third (2011), articulate in “The Benefits of Social Networking Services” that social media has benefited society through social networking services. In contrast, Jacob Amedie (2015) reasons in “The Impact on Social Media” that social media has negative influence to society through depression, creating a false identity, and being an asset to criminal and terrorist acts. Amedie’s strategic use of rhetorical devices provide in-depth analysis and encompasses strong reasoning that proves despite Collin and colleague’s work, social media is more negative to society.
The Benefits of Social Media
In Dr. Phillipa Collin and colleagues (2011) “The Benefits of Social Networking Services”, they investigate social media’s benefits to society. Collin and colleagues explore the usage of social networking services and relate to health, education, and sociology. Social networking services (SNS) are web based services where users create public profiles, connect with other users, and view other users connections. These services include, Facebook, Youtube, and more. In an Australian report, it was reported that
90% of 16 to 29 years olds use the internet with 83% of them using SNS on a frequent basis.
With the younger demographics using SNS, Collin and colleagues review its benefits to education. SNS can provide “[a]cess to virtual or online communities” (Collin et al., 2011, p. 13) which can enhance learning outside of the physical environment. Online environments support peer based learning where students produce, and evaluate work. Education facilities are also able to collaborate with other facilities without geographical complications. A program developed by Sacred Heart School and Pularumpi School used SNS to spread cultural knowledge despite their distance. Moreover, SNS form and maintain relationships regardless of communicative barriers. These barriers include, lack of safe-place access, transportation, time and physical location. Users can maintain relationships with friends and family which improve interpersonal skills and aid in stressful periods. SNS are also home to many niche interests and allow users with the same interests to feel a sense of belonging. Having a space with users alike encourage exploration and experimentation which foster creativity. These positive benefits are predictors of a positive well-being and give way to living a healthy lifestyle.
Collin and colleague’s work succeed in constructing their premise that social media is beneficial to society through clear use of statistics and logic. To begin, their report details the heavy use of SNS of users aged 16 to 29 years old.
This statistic is vital because it encapsulates the reader in how prevalent social media is. By understanding its prevalence, the reader is able to see the scope of how many people are affected by social media. Collin and colleagues discuss the opportunity of online environments and transition the benefits this can have to education. The separate points are structured in a logical direction helping the reader follow along and relate back to their thesis. They discussed the implications of forming and maintaining relationships, including: improved interpersonal skills, feeling a sense of belonging, and fostering creativity. The use of these general prepositions lead to the conclusion that they benefit well-being and a healthy lifestyle. This is a strong use of deductive reasoning and demonstrates Collin and colleagues effective use of logic.
The Downside to Social Media
In spite of Collin and colleagues, Jacob Amedie reasons in “The Impact on Social Media”, that social media has negative effects on society. This includes, causing depression, creating a false identity, and being an asset to criminal and terrorist acts. Facebook is one of the most used social media applications around the world but carries concerns to users. “Facebook depression” is a term for depression from copious amounts of time spent on the platform.
A study conducted by Dr. Joanne Davila consisted of a group of teenage girls who frequented Facebook. The results showed that after a year, the girls experienced higher levels of anxiety, a symptom of depression, than those who did not frequent the application. Amedie capitalizes that this can be result of actively seeking “likes” and comments. Furthermore, constant pressure to maintain an online persona can create false identities. This is problematic because with anonymity, malicious intent can arise. Amedie exemplifies this with the tragic suicide of Megan Meier, a 13-years-old girl. Meier was bullied online by Josh Evans, a fake profile created by her neighbour. Additionally, criminal acts are also malicious uses of social media. Terrorist acts include spreading propaganda, raising funds, and recruiting members. With information posted on social media, criminals understand who their audience is and how to appeal to them. One case involves the Tsarnaev brothers; they were recruited by a terrorist group through suspected use of Facebook, and Youtube. The brothers were involved in the devastating Boston marathon bombing in 2013 and shows the frightening possibilities of social media.
Amedie effectively voices his argument on the negative aspects of social media on society. He appeals with statistics and logical reasoning but his use of emotional examples is the strength of his piece. In the context of terrorists recruiting members online, Amedie discusses the Tsarnaev brothers. This was a strong use of emotional appeal because it compels the reader to feel angry at the effects of social media. By providing an extreme example that resulted in deaths and injuries, it sways the reader’s thoughts to agree with Amedie’s thesis. Also, the example further engages the reader’s emotions because the event was recent, and widely covered by media outlets. Another example Amedie used was the case of 13-years-old Megan Meier.
This example was also very extreme but engages the reader in a different way. Meier and the adult assailant prove that social media is used by diverse age groups and that these tragedies can happen to anyone. Moreover, Meier’s young age can compel feelings of sympathy. The use of sympathy is very powerful because the reader can be drawn by relating Meier’s age to a friend, or family member of their own. Amedie shows that he understands human nature by striking the reader’s morality and placing them in an emotional state. Amedie’s example of Megan Meier is more effective than Collin and colleague’s deductive reasoning because it captures the reader’s emotions and provides a real-life statistic. In summary, Amedie proves that he’s an effective writer with his powerful appeal to emotions through extreme examples.
Conclusion
To conclude, both Amedie and Collin and colleagues effectively communicate their arguments on the effects social media has on society. Amedie’s use of creative examples engage the reader’s emotions and shows the extremes of social media. Conversely, Collin and colleagues appeal with statistics and logic to voice their opinion on social media’s benefits. But, Amedie’s usage of emotional appeal proves to be more effective than Collin and colleague’s statistics and logic. Amedie uses recent examples which demonstrates the relevance of this topic and heightens the strength of his points. After researching both journals, the question of social media’s effect on society proves to be a difficult one. This analysis has influenced my perspective and taught me to remain unbiased because there can be many perspectives on the same topic.
