Today social media is a big component of mass communication that allows people to interact, share their ideas, and observe unlimited information online. Clay Shirky, in his TED-Ed performance, mentioned that now people are living through “the largest increase in expressive capability in human history.” (TED-Ed, 2012). The reasons for such a claim are justified and refer to different opportunities that social media and the Internet give their users. Literally, anyone can register on social media today, and a big part of the population has open access to the Internet. That means that one can share any kind of information online, and that particular information could be later seen by millions of Internet users. There are no more borders between people that live hundreds and thousands of miles away from each other. That allows people to connect with each other, start conversations, and share their thoughts and perspectives on different situations. In other words, Internet users now have a chance to express themselves in an easy and fast way.
However, there are several downsides to this phenomenon that mainly refers to the lack of control over the information spreading with an incredible speed. The credibility of the news, ideas, and utterances is not always checked, and because of that, people may be misinformed. Despite the fact that there is certain censorship that is applied to mass media channels and social media content, it is still difficult to control the large amount of information that is posted by an enormous number of people every day.
The role of social media could be noted from the time of the global pandemic. During that time, social media helped me to stay aware of the current situation in the world. For example, I constantly read the information about the vaccination requirements, coming lockdowns, and the number of disease cases. Social media channels gave me an opportunity to access the news quickly and timely. Next, social media allowed me to stay connected to my friends, relatives, and colleagues, especially in times of lockdowns, when going out was prohibited. However, it can have a negative influence as well. For instance, much false information about the COVID-19 disease was posted online. Fake news and anti-vaccination propaganda might have an adverse effect on impressive social media users. In addition, the constant flow of negative news raised my level of anxiety.
Reference
TED-Ed. (2012). How social media can make history – Clay Shirky. YouTube. Web.