%20Of%20Social%20Media-%20Just%20My%20Opinion&media=https%3A%2F%2Fimg-mkr.buzzfeed.com%2Fbuzzfeed-static%2Fstatic%2F2015-03%2F13%2F17%2Fcampaign_images%2Fwebdr14%2Fthe-power-and-abuse-of-social-media-just-my-opini-2-19245-1426283073-19_dblbig.jpg%3Ftemplate%3Dpinterest-vertical-halftone-v1%26title%3DVGhlIFBvd2VyIChhbmQgQWJ1c2UpIE9mIFNvY2lhbCBNZWRpYS0gSnVzdCBNeSBPcGluaW9u%26color1%3Dpurple){kind=link}
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and many more social media platforms began with a simple idea; the power to share. These networks were all sparked by the mere thought of instantly sharing an idea or a picture to all of your friends. It's very clear we, especially this generation, currently uses social media as less of a sharing platform and more of a fame-game. Personally, almost all of the posts I come across on social media platforms such as Instagram are mostly directing followers and friends to view another page; often mentioning that they are only a certain number of followers away from hitting a "milestone" on their page. There are now even apps that allow you to pay for followers and likes.
Now, I'm not gonna deny that I too have fallen for the facade of this race, who is first to get more popular and who is first to get more likes. However, I feel that I am a part of a select few that catch themselves in moments where they realize that trying so hard to gain attention in the digital world does not help you really achieve anything in the real world, unless you put your heart and soul into it and real put the power you are given into good use. It is moments like this where I sit down, put away my smartphone, and marvel at the world around me; not the world I am connected to almost everyday.
As I write this, I find it upsetting that I do fall into this world wide web of masks that people can hide behind and gain worthless, valueless "likes" and "shares" most of the time. I can't begin to imagine where this dark chain reaction began; when someone said to themselves, "I can manipulate this creation and use it toward my own fame and gain much more attention than I do in the real world".
There are an average of 70 million photos posted on Instagram each day. That means that there is an average of 810 photos being shared Instagram every second, and it doesn't stop there. There are 293,000 statuses being updated every minute on Facebook, that means an average of 4,833 people are on Facebook every second.
The most upsetting thing I find is that this fabricated digital planet has affected the way people act in the real world. I see that now, most teen girls are insecure and often depressed because they compare themselves to this "perfect picture" they see on their iPhone screens. I hate that not only have we abused such a promising platform of communication, but we have allowed it to worm it's way into reality, and cause so much selfishness, social gluttony; while infesting this generation with social anxiety and insecurity.
It is not a plea, but a necessity that we fix what we have broken, and tach the upcoming generation that it doesn't matter what you look like or how much attention you receive on the internet; but it is what you do in the real world to change for the better, no matter how small your good deed is. Once we reimplement this ideal into the next generation, only then will we have truly restored our faith in the evolution of humanity. We cannot let the dark cyberverse of social media corrupt the thriving of humanity forever.
We need to pull away from our screens, and begin to focus on the real connections we have in this world, the only world that truly matters. I know it won't be easy; as a matter in fact, I know it will be extremely hard. However, once we do so, we will feel so much better about ourselves and realize the true worth and impact we have on this Earth and what we can do to change it for the better.
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