Social Media Impact

The statistic that stood out to me from pew research was "ages 18 to 24 – being especially likely to report using Instagram (76%), Snapchat (75%) or TikTok (55%). " (Auxier & Anderson, 2021). This statistic acutely surprised me that instagram and snapchat were more popular then tik tok in my age group. I am not surprised that Instagram, snapchat, and tik tok are the most popular choices for those ages 18 to 24. But I do find it hard to believe that they beat tik tok. I'm sure tik tok is more popular for the younger crowd under 18. I chose this statistic because I am 19 so I can relate to this one the most and compare my own thoughts to it. 

I do believe social media has both positive and negative impacts on todays society. Some of the positives include educational purposes. Social media is a great way to spread information regarding important topics world wide. Of course social media can spread bias opinions so its important to only use reliable information. Although social media does have positive I do personally believe there are more negative factors. Social media is the building ground for cyber bullying, spreading misinformation, harrassment and can be an open door to cyber security threats such as identity theft and fruad. Social media can be a positive space but only if you can block out the negatives. 

The lesson I have learned from the social media impact project was that its okay to spend time on social media as long as you are regulating yourself. Even though my quiz said I have a healthy relationship with social media I do believe I could cut back more. With that being said I probably wouldn't get rid of it fully because it is a great educational source to share awareness about good genuine causes. I learned that its important to step away and take breaks from social media to avoid any negative factors.  

Auxier, B., & Anderson, M. (2021, April 7). Social media use in 2021. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/