My Relationship With Technology
Being from New York, I pass the fairgrounds of the 1964 worlds fair all the time, now what looks like what is run down and aged from the rest of the city. I used to always ask my parents what the observation decks were. Now that I know they were the remnants of the 1964 worlds fair, I often think about the hope they had the technology of the worlds fair promised. The world's fair aimed to create a new society that would have no problems and created the idea new technology would save us. within the last century, the idea of what technology could bring us has rapidly changed, especially in the world of social media. Our relationship between social media and ourselves, makes the question did technology show our true colors as humans?
When I was first introduced to the technology social media, I was in middle school and I had no idea the true risks of social media. I was the last of my friends to create a social media account and had no idea what this new way of communication would be. There was quick change from meaningful conversations in person to only communicating online. the quote "tone is not read through text" is something I live by and I strive to relay what I am really trying to communicate over text. Without being able to read tone through social media posts, texting, and online communication can arise in cyberbullying. in which cyberbullying is one of the main issues of social media. Before social media there were strong movements and programs to end bullying, that I believe worked for the most part because it taught education, and how to assess a bullying situation in person. Whereas online there are resources and ways to report cyberbullying, however there are ways around it and little to no monitoring of content online that is harmful.
People believe they can say whatever they want behind a screen because there is no punishment for it. If there was better regulations of social media, ESPECIALLY amongst children using social media. this leads us into pressuring social media platforms to be responsible for allowing users online to abuse and not follow the social media guidelines. It took until now (10 years of social media use for me) for the government to finally get involved thanks to the Facebook Whistleblower. Frances Haugen, the lady who released the information about facebook specifically said how harmful Facebook and the other platforms they own is for children, especially young girls who are warped by the perceptions of social media. Before summer 2021, where I had 2 jobs and summer courses, I had the time to go on social media, and I was often comparing myself to other users around me and comparing what they do with their life. It is so easy to be caught up in social media when everyone's lives are painted as so much out of the ordinary and "not casual" like these social media platforms claim to be.
I try not to use social media anymore, it is extremely difficult to avoid using these platforms. I am always on my phone. I am a strategic communications major, social media chair for our High Point University Cheerleading team as well. Social Media allows us to communicate with someone at our finger tips, and can insert ourselves into the action through simple threads, posts and conversations that are current and constantly put onto the internet. It is hard to take a break from social media when most groups, jobs, and hobbies I am involved in utilize social media as the main branch of communication. reflecting back on the Worlds Fair, when they did not have access to this technology how they communicated, or even tried to communicate as easily to the degree we communicate today.
While I worry for the future, with the present issues at hand, I believe the risks with social media and the pressures from social media users, the government, will fix the problems like cyberbullying and social media addiction. There will be a solution where kids can be safe and have proper regulation posts. It will not be perfect, yet it will be a safer space to continue to easily communicate with our network. We can adapt to our own human nature, and create an online environment that provides a virtual safe space where all positive ideas are welcome, that do not tear other users down. I also hope we remember our roots and original ideas of technology like at the 1964 worlds fair, that technology's power is in our hands. But until there is a solution on a 100% safe social media platform, it is important to stay vigilant and mindful about what we post and what we consume on social media.
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