Social Media Synthesis Essay

884 Words2 Pages

The use of social media has increased exponentially since its introduction. For example, Facebook is currently the largest online community in the world. The impact of social media has drastically effected higher education, news media, and social behaviors. This technology has changed the way people learn, interact with each other and how the world receives the news.
The undeniable impact of social media has improved the line of communication between news broadcasters and the public in many areas. For instance, Diakopoulos and Naaman states that “The quality of online news comments is of importance to news organizations that want to provide a valuable exchange of community ideas and maintain credibility within the community (qtd in Cromity …show more content…

Many news media broadcasters now have websites that can be viewed by anyone, allowing an abundance of information to reach the public view and instantly receiving feedback from viewers. Online news sources have become common areas of idea exchange. For example, Cromity states that “Diakopoulos and Naaman acknowledge that the growth in sociality and interaction around online news media, news sites are increasingly becoming places for communities to discuss and address common issues spurred by news articles” (26). Comments on such articles give the public a voice on various current social and political issues, which can either spark unity or controversy. Likewise, social media has made public knowledge sharing virtually instant, taking a lot …show more content…

For example, Chan postulates that development of empathic social skills are directly related to happiness and life satisfaction (278). It is a fundamental human need to be able to connect with others and happiness is based on this feeling of connectedness. Thus the ability to relate to others, or empathy, is vital to building relationships with others and to psychological wellbeing. The negative and positive effects of social media are related to usage. Consequently, Chan hypothesizes that social media sites may promote the development of empathic social skills by providing a freer and less intimidating avenue in which to practice (279). However, this hypothesis seems to only be true with low levels of social networking site usage. To explain, Chan states, “extended usage may replace real world interactions to the detriment of users’ ability to exhibit empathy towards others.” (279). The deterioration of empathy can occur when there is a replacement of real-life bonding with online social bonding. In other words, a replacement of “real” interactions with less engaging digital interactions, the result of which is a suppression of empathy. This suppression leads to a decline in happiness and wellbeing. The effects of social media on the mental health of users is best summed up with the age old adage “moderation in all

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