Impact of social media on society
A Social Society: The Positive Effects of Communicating through Social Networking Sites
During the last few years, the social media has grown substantially, providing people ways to interact with each other and communicate with the world.
The first and second article mainly focus on outlining the positive effects of communicating via the social networking sites while the last one brings into discussion some political aspects of using this communication channel.
Companies have benefited by the existence of the social network sites, as they understood that they provide an easy method of advertising and often the users are more inclined to trust another individual’s opinion than an online review (e.g. when buying a specific product, a service, etc.)
Employers have found that the social platforms can ease the ‘head-hunting’ process, by allowing the companies to see the public professional profile and also to share the list of available positions within specific areas of interest.
Politicians have also made use of these tools, making sure that their campaign is rapidly shared amongst users/voters.
ONG companies have encouraged the people to text, tweet and publicize their support using the social network sites, raising funds for the victims in Haiti of over 10 million dollars.
There are some negative aspects to the social media, as presented in the second article.
Most of the critics of the social media make a reference to the fact that the time spent online could be used for more important face-to-face relationships. The virtual ‘friendship’ is challenged constantly because of this reason. “People become dependent on the technology and forget how to socialize in face-to-face context”.
Another negative effect of the social media is that one individual’s privacy is bound to be breached by either the cyber criminals or other tools.
In the last article, “21st Century Statecraft”, the author outlined some other political aspects of the social network sites, so-called “The Che Guevara of the 21st Century”.
“The debate over whether these technologies are better suited to dictators or democrats is over. That is not to say that dictators do not use them effectively. They do.”
As a conclusion, the social network sites represent a major player in today’s communication. Its powers can be used for both good and bad and we all must consider these aspects when we decide to be a part of the social media.
More than the social purposes, they can be used to influence the political life also, as we have seen presented in the lines of the articles.
Jan 19, 2012 @ 16:02:02
Please edit your portfolio. Better stick to the brief discussion of the articles and provide only one paragraph of intro. Actually, you already did a decent job in that respect.
But make sure that the couple of sentences which are almost identical with sentences I can find in other locations on the web – e.g.
‘Because of the rapid development these sites have attracted the interest of academic and industry researchers, intrigued by the fact that they are easy to reach and affordable.’ – are gone.
Jan 20, 2012 @ 20:16:17
Kindly be informed that I have edited the post. Many thanks for your feedback.