Living, Breathing Social Media

Within the last twenty, or maybe even twenty-five years, social media was born and has greatly evolved since. Websites such as Facebook, came along giving people from all over the world a chance to connect to others. For some, that was the beginning of the social media era. Some may argue and say Myspace, but for the younger (now entering adulthood) generation, Facebook was the start. Myspace had already started its decline, maybe even ended by the start of some of their social media presences. The goal in the beginning was to simply connect; To keep in touch and find the people that one may not have known or lost touch with.
Though it did complete that task, there are some concerns that came along with it. “The line between what is or isn’t personal has become blurred.” This is a popular statement expressed by people of both the younger and older generation. We now can know where people are every minute of every day, what they are doing and even the current situations in their personal life. Not only can this be intrusive but dangerous as well. Criminal activity such as stalking derived from one’s social media presence has been at an all time high.
Because these sites have become such a huge part of our lives, jobs and career outlets now take to them to find out who their applicants really are. It now has become the applicants responsibility to watch their posts and what is seen by the outside world. Job training programs and resume building classes now have added sections to their presentations to explain to job seekers the do’s and don’ts of the social media world.
Events such as the Black Lives Matter movement have been greatly affected by social media. The hashtag system, has given black people and the rest of the world a place to find others who support them. This has given black people a stronger voice in the movement and some may say even helped build their momentum. Various social sites help to bring awareness to events that are happening around the country such as police shootings, where a huge portion of this movement derived from. If one wants to find a picture, post, or video related to the cause, all you do is type in Black Lives Matter and a huge compiled page reserved for this topic alone will be brought up.
Social media has a bright future regardless for the concerns about its lack of privacy. Society has grown too accustomed to being connected with each other and having such easy access to an outlet that can get the word out faster than anything any other generation before has seen. The only way social media may die is if something else is invented that protects our privacy but still keeps everyone as connected as they would like. There are too many instagram models and youtube stars that make their living off the internet for it to die anytime soon.