The Dark Side of Social Media

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Imagine trying to function properly on four hours or less of sleep each night. Imagine a straight “A” student who just received their first “F” on a report card. Imagine sitting in sixth period anxiously watching the clock tick, waiting to bolt out of class to go home and curl up in front a seventeen inch PC screen to log on. Imagine personal insecurities escalating to the point where ending life seems like a conceivable option of escape from the cruel reality of the world. These are only a few hazardous effects that some encounter using social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter. Many teens use these websites daily, hourly, and in some severe cases, even minutely. A 2009 Compete.com study ranked Facebook the most-used social networking service by worldwide monthly active users. Because the public is more apt to be exposed to the positive, fun side of social media, many users are completely oblivious to the numerous dangers that lurk within the networks’ pages.

Of course, positive effects to responsible social media usage exist. For example, Facebook makes keeping in touch with friends and family who live in a different state or country easier and cheaper than calling them on the phone. Users can view photo albums as well as status posts on everyone‘s well-being. Get-togethers, sporting events, and other occasions are easier to plan and spread the word on Facebook and Myspace. Instead of going through the hassle of buying and addressing several invitations and worrying about the invites arriving on time, one can create a single invitation and send it to over one-thousand people within a matter of seconds. According to an editorial on Facebook dangers, “These kinds of websites,. . . , are a m...

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...erced Sun-Star (CA). EDITORIAL: On Facebook and Twitter, Dangers Lurk. . Merced Sun-Star (CA). 22 Dec. 2009. (Web). 25 Feb. 2011.

Orloff, Brian. VIDEO: Miley Reveals Why She Quit Twitter-Through Song. . People. 09 Oct. 2009. (Web). 08 Mar. 2011.

Perez, Sarah. More Cyberbullying on Facebook, Social Sites than Rest of Web. . Read Write Web. 10 May 2007. (Web). 26 Feb. 2011.

Press, Skip. Fighting Cyberstalking. . The Byte Buyer, Inc. n.d. (Web). 26 Feb. 2011.

Tillotson, Kristen. 2 Wired 2 Sleep: Texting and Staying Online Late into the Night, Teens are Getting Less Sleep Than Ever. . Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN). 03 Sept. 2010. (Web). 25 Feb. 2011.

Wilson, Lauren. Facebook Fixation Harms Student Grades. . Australian, The. 13 Apr. 2009. (Web). 25 Feb. 2011.

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