We’ve Been Tricked Into Thinking We Need Social Media

Living without social media showed me how little we need it.

Photo by Oleg Magni from Pexels

As the years roll by, the mountain of evidence that Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Tik Tok, and social media are bad for individuals and society as a whole continues only get bigger. Today it’s Frances Haugen’s leaks and testimonies, tomorrow it’s another scandal. Your reasons for wanting to quit social media only grow greater each year.

Yet the same thing stops you from deleting your social media every time. One simple belief keeps you from doing what you know would be better for the world and for yourself. It’s the phrase “I need social media.”

• I need Facebook to contact my overseas friends.
• I need Facebook Messenger to talk to all my friends who insist on using messenger.
• I need Instagram to show photos of the kids with the family.
• I need WhatsApp to contact my overseas friends.
• I need Twitter to keep up with the news.
• I need Snapchat to send destructible messages.
• I need Instagram or Snapchat stories to know what’s going on.

People tell themselves many stories about why they need social media. Social media companies’ entire…