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Kelsey Akin
Professor Collins
ENGL 1301
31 October 2016
Social Media: Agree to Disagree
Social media is a major component of todays society and affects the ways in which
humans communicate and interact with one another. According to History Cooperative, it first
appeared in the 1970s when operations like Bulletin Board Systems, or online meeting places,
emerged. They allowed users to connect through a central system by posting online messages for
others to read and respond to. These systems were primarily utilized by hobbyists and were
overlooked by the general public. It was not until the early 2000s when a major media boom led
to the creation of websites like Friendster, LinkedIn, and MySpace that popularized online
networking. These websites allowed individuals with common interests and shared backgrounds
to contact one another and create meaningful connections. Since then, social medias prevalence
has escalated and its existence affects almost every Americans day-to-day life (The History).
Differing opinions regarding social media have recently emerged because it has resulted in
several outcomes that may be argued as both advantageous and disadvantageous.
According to many experts in the field of psychology and technology, social media can
have detrimental effects on an individuals mental health. Moira Burke, a computer scientist
studying human-computer relationships, has concluded through her research that passive
consumption of Facebook correlates to a marginal increase in depression and that the lack of
physical interaction with friends and family can cause a person to feel lonely and isolated. This
evidence supports the idea that social media is harmful to the general population, disassociating

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individuals from their humanity and decreasing their standard of living by effecting their mental
health. An idea similar to this was discussed in Sherry Turkles book, Alone Together. Sherry
Turkle, a Social Studies professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, believes that the
tendency for individuals to over-manage their social media profiles can cause presentation
anxiety and alienation from themselves. Just like Burke, Turkle concludes that the increase in
social media usage has led an increase in mental illness and depression. These conclusions
reinforce the idea that social media damages society and negatively impacts individuals.
Cyberbullying, or online harassment, is a major concern for the opponents of social
media. According to Paul Malcore, an experienced social media manager and editor,
cyberbullying is so common that 21% of teens said the main reason they [check] social media
was to make sure nobody was saying mean things about them. This information exemplifies the
commonality of technological violence. It is argued that cyberbullying can have damaging
effects on individuals and may even result in self-harm or suicide. According to a Brandeis
University article, in 2010 Alexis Pilkington committed suicide at the age of seventeen because
she received multiple cyberbullying attacks on her social media platforms, and in 2003 Ryan
Halligan hung himself at the age of thirteen because his peers spread untrue gossip, told him to
kill himself and drew him into an online conversation that was laterspread to his entire
school. Examples like these support the opponents concerns with social media and validate
their claims regarding cyberbullying.
Many specialists believe that social media is beneficial because it fosters friendships and
allows individuals to socialize in a more efficient manner. Amanda Lenhart, a high-ranking
research specialist for Pew Research, has expressed her approval of online friendships in many
of her articles. Through her fieldwork, she has concluded that social media is a valuable platform

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that allows users to remain connected to their friends when physical conversation is not possible.
It enables individuals to send quick messages to their confidants and provides them with
opportunities for social support. Additionally, the convenient nature of social media allows users
to hold conversations with multiple people more frequently because a physical meeting is not
required (Lenhart). Zawn Villines, a journalist specializing in mental health web content, argues
similar points, believing that online friendships are sometimes greater than those maintained in
reality. Villines reasons that while friendships in real life require time, energy, and a lot of
discussion, friendships online are simply a click of a button. He also points out that social media
enables those that find making friends difficult to involve themselves in companionship and
social interaction (Villines). Both Villines and Lenharts arguments reflect the opinions of other
proponents of social media and support the argument that online connections improve society
and its individuals.
Data analysts and news professionals argue that social media positively contributes to the
global news network and aids many of its users. Professionals like Andrea Caumont and Monica
Anderson have researched the relationships between social media sites and news networks,
concluding that social media users are so crucial to the press that they are practically covering
the news themselves, by posting photos or videos. The contributions of social media users help
inform the general public and supply the population with important updates. Anderson and
Caumont have also deduced that many social media users are less frequently relying on
traditional news outlets like newspapers and television, instead turning to online platforms such
as Facebook and YouTube. According to the pairs research, 30% of the general population
receives their daily news from Facebook and 8% get it from YouTube (Anderson, Caumont).
Their findings prove that social media is crucial to the informing of the public. According to the

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Public Broadcasting Services website, one example of the positive contributions of social media
can be observed in the events of April 2015, following the Boston Marathon bombing.
Immediately after the attack, individuals turned to social media to broadcast information about
the event and search for loved ones. Programs allowed users to create forms online that helped
reconnect families, proving to be much more successful than posting pictures on bulletin boards
beside the World Trade Center (In Face). Examples like this and research like Andersons and
Caumonts support the idea that social media positively influences society and subsequently its
members.
Social media prevalence is controversial because it can be argued as both beneficial and
detrimental. The proponents of social media argue that it improves friendships and spreads
valuable information while the opponents claim that it leads to cyberbullying and a decrease in
mental health. The two sides of the argument can never agree because no factor outweighs
another.

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Works Cited
Anderson, Monica, and Andrea Caumont. How Social Media Is Reshaping News. Pew
Research Center RSS, 24 Sept. 2014, http://www.pewresearch.org/facttank/2014/09/24/how-social-media-is-reshaping-news/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
In Face of Disaster, Social Media Helped Spread News and Connect Bostonians. PBS, PBS,
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/media-jan-june13-dd_04-16/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
Lenhart, Amanda. Teens, Technology and Friendships. Pew Research Center Internet Science
Tech RSS, 6 Aug. 2015, http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/06/teens-technology-andfriendships/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
Malcore, Paul. Teen Cyberbullying and Social Media Use on the Rise. Rawhide,
http://www.rawhide.org/blog/wellness/teen-cyberbullying-and-social-media-use-on-therise/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
Social Media and Mental Health: The Good, The Bad, And The Status Going Forward.
Anxiety, 9 June 2015, https://www.anxiety.org/social-media-self-harm-anxietydepression-mental-health. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
Social Media: Cyber Bullying and Teen Suicide. Brandeis University, Incsub, 9 Nov. 2011,
http://blogs.brandeis.edu/samgajewski/2011/11/09/social-media-cyber-bullying-andteen-suicide/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
The History of Social Media. History Cooperative, 21 Sept. 2016,
http://historycooperative.org/the-history-of-social-media/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2016.
Turkle, Sherry. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each
Other. Basic Books, 2012.

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Villines, Zawn. How Social Networking Changes Friendships. Good Therapy Blog,
http://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/how-social-networking-changes-friendship-1123127.
Accessed 30 Oct 2016.