Dealing With the Ugly Side of Social Media in the Digital Era

The digital age has accelerated the rise of disruptive applications like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and Twitter. Today, billions of people use social media to share images and thoughts with their friends. 

Social media’s original purpose was to establish platforms that promote social interactions and engagement. Despite the many advantages associated with it, its ugly side has been rapidly surfacing in the digital era.

Undoubtedly, there is a monster eating away at the original idea of digital media. This deformity is manifested through the following:

Harboring hate speech.

Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit have been hijacked by hate speech fanatics, who use them to taunt other people because of their race, religion, or color.  According to a 2018 study administered by Statista, 64% of teenagers reported that they repeatedly encountered hate speech on social media, with 21% considering it a frequent part of their feed.

Online hate speech has taken a dark turn, reaching a level of deadly violence. Wade Michael Page, a white supremacist who murdered nine people at a Southern Carolinian African-American church, frequently used digital platforms like Twitter and Facebook to put out his message of hate.

Usually, hate groups hide under the legal entitlement of freedom of speech to verbally or even physically harm minority groups. Social media subgroups such as Reddit channels, Instagram pages, and TikTok accounts have given bigots an outlet to express their hate to the world. 

Social media usage is linked to depression.

Research has revealed that social media platforms can significantly affect your mental health. Studies have linked the use of social media to depression, loneliness, anxiety, reduced sleep quality, lower self-esteem, inattention, and hyperactivity, often in teens and adolescents. 

When social media and depression are compared, it is determined that those who use it most are about 2.7 times more likely to be depressed than those who use it the least. 

Depression can result in reduced educational attainment, lower earning potential, increased chance of teenage childbearing, higher unemployment, and increased work disability  (According to the study conducted by Workplace Mental Health).

Leading to addiction.

According to Statista, Overall, 40 percent of U.S. online users aged 18 to 22 reported feeling addicted to social media. Another study conducted by Harvard University reveals that self-disclosure on social networking sites lights up the same part of the brain that ignites when taking an addictive substance. 

Decreasing productive time.

In North America, an average user spends 2 hours 6 minutes a day on social platforms. While this seems like a reasonable time, it reduces the time one would have spent doing productive activities in a day. For example, an average American has to work 8.8 hours per day, but spending about 3 hours on it may compromise their daily productivity. 

How to successfully deal with the ugly side of social media.

We can’t downplay the fact that social media in the digital age is causing drastic effects on our lives. To prevent yourself from being a victim, you can take some essential steps:

• Not allowing social media not to control your daily schedule. Divide your time accordingly and make sure you prioritize productivity during your daily routine.
• Taking some time off on social media and concentrating on other important work. This will allow you to relax your mind and focus on other vital tasks. 
• Defining your own social media usage limits. Analyze what you post on your profiles and restrain yourself from being controversial. 
• Be transparent with yourself. It’s important to acknowledge the problem, as it allows you to deal with it properly. 

It’s essential that we allow ourselves a break from social media. While these platforms are meant to bring us together, they can indirectly tear you apart from your daily routine.