Recent times have witnessed an increase in the use of social media. Platforms such as Twitter and Facebook facilitate communication and interaction between individuals from different parts of the world. Social sites act as a meeting point for people with different backgrounds and goals in life. Primarily, social media sites changed the ways in which we communicate and interact with one another. Human lives have changed significantly as a result of social media.
Primarily, social media sites have re-defined the customization of messages and content during interactions. Both Facebook and Twitter allow users the freedom to structure their messages in a manner that appeals to their audience, and conveys the intended message (Kaplan and Haenlein 61). Some of the customization tools include the picture editing options that are available in both Twitter and Facebook. Users of social media enjoy the freedom to format their messages in a manner that appeals to their audience. The personalization of messages as a result of social media platforms augments communication between the users. The customized message acts as a sense of identity where people are able to infer the characteristics or interests of the sender from their customized messages. Customization of messages facilitates improves relations in between individuals in the same social circle. The augmentation of relations in the community is realized through successful interactions between divergent parties involved in subject conflicts. As a tool that enables the transmission of customized barriers, social media transcends the limitations that are posed by language and cultural barriers. Without proper regulation, social media platforms may also exacerbate hostilities between different individuals.
Alternatively, the use of social media facilitates the quick transmission of news across the world, Information is spread at an accelerated rate as a result of the use of social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. More people are turning to social media to access news from across different parts of the world. Stenovec and Gould argue that 23% of millennials access news through the social media sites. The discovery is a reflection of the influence of social media on the news acquisition process among individuals in the contemporary settings. The change is inspired by several factors. News on social media is brief and customized, and hence increasingly appealing to the identified group of individuals. Platforms such as Twitter contain slots for the trending news. From the platform, people are able to acquire information on various disciplines in the society. The news offered by social media platforms tend to be relevant because they are customized to reflect the needs of different individuals and geographical situation. Still, it is necessary to note that social media platforms may also lead to the transmission of false information. The absence of filters guarding news transmission on social media platforms encourages the dissemination of false news.
Social media platforms provide a medium through which real time interactions can be achieved. Subsequently, communication is no longer limited to the textual form. Individuals can engage verbally on platforms such as Facebook. Such a tool is important in revealing the dynamics of an individual’s society and highlighting some of the concerns that affect the society (Shirky 29). Real time interactions augment the relationships between different individual. The initiative also promotes accountability. In the knowledge that their actions will be exposed on social media platforms, individuals tend to act more responsibly. An example of accountability drive in the society through the use of social media was manifested by the #MeToo Movement on twitter. Still, without regulation, social media platforms, in the application of real time broadcasting, may jeopardize and individual’s security. It is not uncommon to hear that criminals make use of information derived from Facebook to single out their victims.
Additionally, social media acts as an educational tool. The platform provides people with an opportunity to acquire knowledge on various aspects of life (Wade). Subsequently, communication has been simplified as a result of the different interactions on social media (Kimanuka). Eased communication between individuals from different backgrounds attests to the social media’s educational values. Still, social media can also lead to retrogression with regards to the educational value. The shortened forms of words used in the platforms may negate an individual’s concept of a language. For instance, an individual who is not a native English speaker may assume that words such as “lol” are part of the lingo.
Conclusively, social media has greatly revolutionized the ways in which we communicate and interact. Primarily, the tool has facilitated the quick, costless and efficient dissemination of information and news. Equally, the tool acts as an educative tool and an enabler of real time broadcasting. Such initiatives promote accountability and cohesion in the community. Still, the use of social media may hinder communication between different individuals given the possibility of customization. Learning and language acquisition may also be jeopardized after using social media as a source of information.
Works Cited
Kaplan, Andreas M., and Michael Haenlein. "Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media." Business horizons, vol. 53, no. 1, 2010, pp. 59-68.
Kimanuka, Oscar. “Social media has changed the way we communicate.” The New Times, 2015, http://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/read/188395. Accessed July 9, 2018.
Shirky, Clay. "The political power of social media: Technology, the public sphere, and political change." Foreign affairs, 2011, pp. 28-41.
Stenovec, Tim and Skye Gould. “Millennial Don’t Watch the News.” Business Insider, 2015, https://www.businessinsider.com/millennials-dont-watch-the-news-2015-11?IR=T. Accessed July 9, 2018.
Wade, Lori. “How Social Media is reshaping Today’s Education System.” Georgetown University, 2018, http://csic.georgetown.edu/magazine/social-media-reshaping-todays-education-system/. Accessed July 9, 2018.
