The Creation Of False Reality Of Social Media

Social media has been so deeply rooted in today’s society, that it is almost impossible to imagine life as it is now without it. Undeniably so, that some people could not get through their day without updating their Snapchat, Instagram, or Twitter every ten minutes. According to Christina Frederick and Tianxin Zhang, “69% of people in the United States use social media, and the most active group in social media being 18 to 29-year old’s” (24). Despite the fact that social media can have positive aspects, it is widely known that with all positives comes many negatives. In the case of social media, the negatives do indeed outweigh the positives. Social media provides people with the opportunity to enter a virtual world where no consequences or repercussions occur, resulting in a notably large change in the way people would normally act versus their online behavior.

In the real world, rules are strictly enforced and individuals are penalized if they don’t fall in line; however, in the false world of social media, rules cease to exist. For individuals seeking freedom or an outlet where they can say whatever they want freely, social media is an immensely appealing option. Andreassen C.S. emphasizes that authority figures are absent in the online world, which therefore “leads the adolescents to virtual environments” (qtd. in Savci and Aysan 205). With an absence of authority figures, such as parents, adolescents are given the opportunity to say whatever they want to whomever they want. Mustafa Savci and Ferda Aysan emphasized that individuals therefore “tend to use social media as a way to rant or get out their anger ”(205). A person that would normally be nice and never say anything cruel in person can be a horrible, rude person online without facing any sort of repercussions. Although no one appreciates authority figures telling them what they can or cannot say, especially adolescents, without them the world would be chaos, and that is exactly what social media is.

Social media also provides people with an opportunity to create a false version of themselves online without anyone knowing. Many have a tendency to put filters on their real personalities, choosing to present “only the best bits of themselves” (Sally Adee para. 4). Particularly, the parts that show their best qualities and features. Everyone knows at least one person with dual personalities, who present them self exceptionally different online than in person. All you see is the good, but the pain, hurt, and struggle remain uncaptured. People do this because it is much easier to be fake than genuine. Sally Adee emphasizes this by saying, “More people’s true selves diverged from the persona they presented online” (para.8). No one is going to post about how dull and tedious their lives are, consisting of the same monotonous routines every day. Simply due to the fact that it doesn’t make for exciting news. People want to present an exciting story that will catch others attention, in the hopes of obtaining the most likes. But in their defense, we are all taught from an early age to smile for the camera, so our parents can fill their Facebook with pictures of a seemingly “perfect” and happy child. We are all therefore programmed to only share the happy, perfect moments with the rest of the world. By presenting these falsified versions of oneself online, people are presenting the illusion that they are perfect, when in reality they’re not.

Finally, some feel a sense of joy or relief from simple getting away with degrading and putting down others. Bullying has been an ongoing problem for decades, but with the creation of social media an even larger problem arose: cyberbullying. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, cyberbullying is “the use of information technology to bully a person by sending or posting text or images of an intimidating or threatening nature”. Cyberbullies use social media to their advantage by telling people horrific things without having to face them in real life. Agustin Fuentes writes about an experience he encountered when an unknown Facebook user wrote, “YOU NEED TO HAVE your throat cut out and your decomposing, bug-infested body fed to wild pigs” to Kyle Edmond after he lost the 2017 British tennis tournament (para. 1). No one patrols what individuals say online, so “being an antagonizer… is easier now than its ever been” (Fuentes para. 18). Even shy people, who wouldn't normally say these cruel things face-to-face, can go undercover and be as hateful as they want without repercussions. With zero consequences online, aggression and hatefulness will only grow and prosper. According to Agustin Fuentes, “Aggression on social media has reached such a pinnacle of acrimony that some U.S. House members proposed designating an annual ‘National Day of Civility’” (para. 4). For these types of bullies social media is essential, because without it most of them wouldn’t have the guts to bother anyone. They would be too afraid of getting caught or getting into a fight. The alternate world of social media has altered people’s minds and given them an easy way to manipulate and hurt others, without having to face them face-to-face.

In conclusion, regardless of the positive aspects sharing information online provides, social media allows people to create false identities and act in a manner that under normal circumstances they wouldn’t do. On social media, people do not have to think about what they say or the consequences of their actions, but in real life there are constraints on what you can do. The social and family values we have in place forces people to behave and act a certain way; however, once an individual enters the world of social media those principles and values disappear.