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Nursultan Alimbek
COMM 489W
Mid-term paper
10.12.15
Jacob Silverman’s writing documents the significant price that users of social media pay for their constant online connection. Silverman argues that people have left the Silicon-Valley companies to take not only charge of their lives but also shape their behaviors. Moreover, Silverman looks at how social media has destroyed people’s lives; while people pretend to be happy on social media, the reality is that they are indeed unhappy in real life situations. He argues his ideas on the destruction of social media in a total of thirteen chapters that range from the ideology of social media to social media rebellion. The other section includes the notion of engineered to like, ‘pics, or it didn’t
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The companies like Google have the idea that they know what an individual likes from the information the users submit. The primary challenge, in this case, is that social media users are seen as incapable of making rational decisions about their choices. For example, on may be walking down a street during lunch hours and from nowhere, they get a notification that there is a restaurant in their surrounding that is offering a certain meal during those times. Moreover, Jacob Silverman asks the question as to why social …show more content…
Barely a day goes by without social media users trolling each other and this has become a trend in such a way that the users always look forward to another troll as long as it does not target them. On social media, people like to troll others but are offended when other people troll them. Trolling not only affects those that are trolled psychologically but also affect their wellbeing. Moreover, social media users troll other because for unnecessary reasons such as their looks or
The essay by technology reporter for the New York Times, Jenna Wortham, titled, “It’s Not about You, Facebook. It’s about Us” discusses the idea that Facebook has helped shape emotions and now leaves its users emotionless. Although Wortham brings in several sources she does not support these sources with statistics and her personal feelings stand in the way of getting her main points across. In addition, she has a weak conclusion that leaves readers trying to grasp the actual message that Wortham is attempting to convey. Wortham fails to effectively support her thesis that society feels that it can not live without facebook.
“The Facebook Sonnet,” a poem by Sherman Alexie, deciphers the present day culture’s fascination with social media. Alexie scrutinizes how status updates are altering and molding Facebook user’s day to day lives. He gives his cynical opinion of the website in the form of a sonnet, analyzing how Facebook is lengthening the immaturity of youth by concerning its users with opportunities to portrays one’s life as more fulfilling that it is in reality. “The Facebook Sonnet” describes twenty-first century culture in its most negative light by painting a picture of a self-centered society through Alexie’s use of satirical tone, irony, and sonnet structure.
Written over 20 years ago, Neil Postman’s “Five Things We Need to Know About Technological Change” confronts the issues of the present and future by examining the past. Postman’s unbiased approach to technological change allows the reader to decide for herself/himself whether recent innovations are helpful or detrimental. When used ethically and cautiously, social media can positively benefit society; however, social media has proven to have many large problems that, if left unexamined, could deconstruct our society.
Throughout history, social movements have continuously formed because of a person who had the courage to stand up against the injustice they witnessed in every day live. When I was a child, I remember feeling as if it takes a superhero-like person to start a social movement. However, I have found that through the use of social media today, any person with a passion for making a change can spark a social movement. Social movements are a powerful way to help people believe that their voice matters and they should stand up for what they believe in. Before the advancement of technology, it took a lot longer for social movements to become prominent in society’s media outlets because of the difficulties of not having enough time in one’s life to
The evolution of technology has had a great impact on our lives, both positive and negative. While it is great to be able to be able to travel faster and research anything with the smartphones that now contain almost every aspect of our daily lives, there are also many advances within the realm of technology. Nicholas Carr presents information on the dependency aircraft pilots have on automated technology used to control airplanes in the article “The Great Forgetting”. Likewise, in “Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?” written by Stephen Marche, the result of isolation and pseudo relationships created by social media is shown throughout the article. We live in such a fast paced society with so much information at our fingertips that we don’t make
In “Is Facebook making us lonely” Marche speaks about Facebook coming at a time where Loneliness was at its peak. He argues that the popularity of Facebook came because it promised a connection that people longed for during the period of peak loneliness. Facebook in his eyes is seen as an outlet for the lonely. The popular social media site helps those who are alone cope because they feel as if Facebook connects them to the world and their “real friends”. While “Love in the age of Like” may contrast those views it does not make any of Marche’s claims inferior or untrue. Ansari simply just offers a different view on the effects of social media and technology overall. Rather than argue on the side of isolation Ansari believes that technology provides a real connection that has never before been offered to society before. In my belief Ansari’s stance holds more weight and is more relatable. Marche’s stance also argues that Facebook does indeed connect us, which is its job. His article and research proves exactly what Ansari is trying to convey to the readers of his own article. One thing that both have taught me through these readings is that Technology can be a double edged sword, it all depends on who is behind the keyboard and also the users intentions. Each author has also taught me that regardless of your opinion the effect of technology on today’s society cannot be denied. The day and age we
People feel they are on top of the world due to the numerous friends that they have on their Facebook page. Having Facebook friends provides them with a sense of acceptance they had never experienced. These experiences are a gateway to a stream of emotions that has the potential to harm as well as to help. Social media has helped to emotionally feel connected and is an easy and efficient way to stay in contact with family and friends; however, it is harmful when it is the culprit for facilitating and fueling arguments and unhealthy relationships. “As the Danish academic Anders Colding-Jorgensen argues: ‘We should no longer see the internet as a post office where information is sent back and forth, but rather as an openarena for our identity and self-pro...
Social media has affected people negatively because people depend on social media more than their brain .Which does not bring any benefit to them .Our society has come from being very social to antisocial over the years. Many people don 't interact with each other anymore .We search, post ,tweet and snap not even knowing who we are sharing are information with . In his article “Mind Over Mass Media ,” Steven Pinker writes about the amount of knowledge and power social media is taking away from our brains .College students and high school students are likely to use social media to do their work assignments.Social Media is slowing taking the place of boosk and many other ways people learn. Therefore, I agree that social media is taking the
The society today is extremely affected by social media and the constantly evolving technology. People are becoming increasingly narcissistic, changing themselves online solely get more ‘likes’. Our behaviour on social media is to a great extent risk free, where loving in the real world is full of risks. In his speech ‘Liking Is for Cowards. Go for What Hurts’, the American novelist and essayist Jonathan Franzen addresses these risk free narcissistic tendencies, asking whether the risks of love in real life are really worth it.
“The Facebook Sonnet” by Sherman Alexie brings up ideas and controversy over social media because it decreases face-to-face communication. Though Facebook allows people to contact old and new friends, it renders away from the traditional social interaction. Online, people are easily connected by one simple click. From liking one’s status to posting multiple pictures, Facebook demands so much attention that it’s easy for users to get attach. They get caught up in all the online aspect of their lives that they fail to appreciate real life relationships and experiences. Within Alexie’s diction and tone, “The Facebook Sonnet” belittles the social media website by showing how society are either focused on their image or stuck in the past to even live in the present.
“One day recently, Cynthia Newton’s 12-year-old daughter asked her for help with homework, but Newton didn’t want to help her, because she was too busy on Facebook. So her daughter went upstairs to her room and sent an e-mail asking her for help, but Newton didn’t see the e-mail, because, well, she was too busy on Facebook.” This unusual action, by a is from one of typical moms in this nation is excerpted from an article titled, “Five Clues…Facebook” from CNN. As the social networks system have s become rooted into our society, people have become way different from the past. As soon as Facebook came out in the world,When Facebook appeared, people were fascinated by it, and it grew as theinto the most massive, powerful social network that connects the wholein the world. Since the birth of Facebook, a majority of people became so addictive to it [D1] as Newton acted; so, what draws people into Facebook? What makes them click on the “News feed” button in every five minutes? I would like to ask a broader question: Why are people fascinated by and dependent on social media, and what is its role and impact on us?
Currently, social media plays a significant role in our everyday lives and the way people in society interacts with one another. A few years ago, before its influence reached the point where it is now, the large platforms such as Facebook or Twitter which function was merely to keep family and friends connected no matter where they were or what they were doing, and the requirements were an internet connection and a smart phone or a computer. People would share pictures or posts to keep others “updated” on their lives and what they were thinking. Now social media platforms are far more complicated. In various of them, such as Instagram or Snapchat, it is not enough to only share a picture or video of your day, but it is almost a requirement and people are pushed to take an extra mile further away and make yourself appear interesting in the eyes of others. The “feed” requires to be eye catching, the captions should be memorable, the places one goes to ought to look way better than they actually are, you have to include friends in such posts to prove one have a social life outside of the phone. The importance of the number of followers, likes or viewers
Trolls are hiding all over. No, not the kind that hides under bridges and makes you solve their riddle, but the kind that would follow and stalk anyone anywhere by just them being at home; the media refers to them as internet trolls the most disgusting trolls of them all. As the year’s progresses, internet becomes more advance in which gives ordinary people access to vast amount of information and data instantly, it also allow people to post information about themselves on public sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and many other sites. Trolling can generally be define as someone who leaves rude, controversial, or extraneous comments on different sort of media outlets in an attempt to provoke others to response back in an emotional or rude way. While comments could always be ignore, being able to express yourself in a comments shouldn’t be moderated at all, because it gives the viewer something to be entertain with, the creator of the context could always disable the
In his essay with the headline “Facebook and the Epiphanator: An End to Endings?” written in July of 2011, Paul Ford states that new media hinders a person and all that they share from being anything more than a set of data. Ford explains the staunch differences between old media “the epiphanator” and more current forms of media. Ford examines the unconventional methods of social media, the way it transforms and intertwines, but never comes to an end. His only explanation for this strange shift is that “Facebook is generated by algorithms without feelings” (Ford 1). Conversely, old media, according to Ford, chronicles everything systematically with a beginning, middle, and an end. Ford describes “the epiphanator” as the balance of it all. He
The influence of rapidly growing social media, television, and the internet has taken the world by storm in recent years. Its fascinating development over the years is nothing short of remarkable when you take into account that 20 years ago, only 16 million people in the world were "online", compared to the 2 billion that roam on the internet now. Modern communications technology has now become so familiar and utterly banal, yet there is still this tingling sensation when one receives a text from a love interest on Facebook or WhatsApp. Human identity, the idea that defines each and every one of us, is on the verge of being radically defined by social media. This essay will provide a balanced outlook on the positive and negative effects that social media have had on the behaviour and thinking on humans. The topic is a very controversial one, but the purpose of this is to help readers formulate a view on whether the arguments in this essay benefit society in general, or whether they harm the well-being of the human brain and detach us from reality.