Undeniable Impact of Social Media and the Role of Fake News

The evolution of human beings has been an interesting subject since the dawn of human research. The development that we had gone through is so vast that the topic “Development” is another subject itself! Likewise, the impact of our development is one big thing to consider. It is the impact that makes us learn from our experiences. So, what exactly the word “impact” implies? Impact generally is an effect. An effect of a certain process. This impact enables us to adapt ourselves to that process, which can be either in a good or bad way. The same thing can affect us in both good and bad ways. That depends on the topic which we are considering. The main focus here is to analyse possible impact of social media essay, this essay is divided in two parts: an overview of advantages and disadvantages of social media and then we will analyse the concept of fake news on media platfforms and how it affects people. 

Social Media and Its Impact

With the emergence of social media, we have seen a considerable amount of change in information and communication technology. Social media has played a key role in this transformation. The process of change is not over yet and we are still witnessing ongoing changes in this sector. The impact of social media has witnessed heavy growth with the advancement of mobile technology. People spent a large share of their time on mobile devices. Mobile devices provide you with great comfort to connect with anyone anywhere and at any time. This has been the main reason behind the great rise in the use of Social Media.

 Social media comes with a lot of advantages, in fact, we can owe a substantial part of our society’s growth to social media. We have witnessed a blast of information and content in the last few years and cannot deny the power of social media in our lives.

Social media is widely used to create awareness for causes that are important for society. Social media can also help many noble causes run by NGOs and other social welfare societies. Social media can also aid the government in other agencies in spreading awareness and also fight crime. For many businesses, social media is a strong tool for business promotion and marketing. Many communities are built through social media platforms which are essential for our society’s growth.

Let's now discuss a few celebrities who use social media with good intentions. Emma Watson isn’t the UN Goodwill Ambassador for nothing. She holds the position because of how evidently passionate she is about women’s rights and gender equality. Even if you’re an occasional social media user, we’d find it hard to believe you missed her push for UN Women’ ‘HEFORSHE’ campaign, a solidarity movement. Not only does she continue to encourage dialogue on Twitter regarding gender equality, but she also gave a remarkable speech on her campaign at the UNITED NATIONS. “It is time that we all perceive gender on a spectrum, instead of two sets of opposing ideals,” she noted. “If we stop defining each other by what we are not, and start defining ourselves by who we are, we can all be freer, and this is what HeForShe is about. It’s about freedom.”

John Cena, being the burly pro wrestler that he is, was a standout in Amy Schumer’s Train wreck not for his beefcake arms, but, surprisingly, for his sense of humour and vulnerability. IRL, Cena seems to be that same kind of guy, one who tweets motivational quotes to boost individual self-esteem and encourages patriotism and passion. So, what’s he passionate about? Helping sick children in need. Not only has he supported finding a cure for Batten disease, but he’s also a huge champion of his own fans—Cena currently holds the record for most Make-A-Wish, wishes granted, with more than 500.

The Positive Impact of Social Media in the Life

Social media has become a part of everyone's life that can't be ignored. Social media has both positive and negative impacts not only on youth but also on elders and children. Let us see some of the positive impacts of social media

Making friends has become easier with these social networking sites like Facebook, google+ and twitter, etc. in the olden days it was a bit tough to make friends unless and until one has the personal interest of going out and making friends. Later after in the decades of '70s and 80's mobile phones helped in connecting and improving conversation with people. And now the exploration of social networking sites sprang up and it has changed the whole idea of making friends once more and forever. By connecting with friends through social networking sites we share all of our good and bad experiences with friends. This will improve the relationship between friends and thus creating good bonding. Everybody is becoming so busy with their lives that they don't even have time to communicate with their family members. Our time is getting thinner and thinner with a busy work schedule and family commitments. Social networking sites give us a chance to communicate in a speedy and effective manner.

The idea of communication between people to be “seamless”, being at far away distances was majorly used during World War 1. But the humane attitude led it to a more productive result, which we now referred to as “Information Technology”. In today’s world, we have gathered a lot of resources necessary for the development of civilization. Now everyone knows that, “Earth revolves around the Sun”, and that “Earth is not the only planet with the possibility of life”.

We started from the “stone world”, building fires, and shelters. We proceeded to the enhancement of human civilization through the several discoveries and inventions, which includes the setup of the foundation of wired and later the wireless communication systems. We were able to exchange the information of several valuable mineral’s availabilities, like Gold, Iron, Silver, etc, through a communication channel, which is now used in various ways, including the treatment of several diseases. In today’s era, we get the latest news to act upon quickly and wisely, to ensure the best possible outcomes of the corresponding event. For instance, the news of the closest asteroid approach to the earth was sent out by NASA 24 days before the incident, which helped the Government, people, and other organizations to plan accordingly, and stay prepared beforehand.

All the above cases don’t seem to be directly related to social media, but actual the major role was done by this platform. People shared and received information that was useful to them, and would have not been reached by any other media. Nowadays, the Government handles their own Twitter, Facebook and other accounts, to connect with more people, not only in their country but in others as well. During the time of disasters like floods and earthquakes, people started several campaigns, including the donation collection to help the needy ones, and the root platform they used was social media. Because of the huge population availability, it is easier for people to raise the issues and gather support.

The Impact of Fake News in Social Media

First of all, hate crimes are committed by people from every nation one against the other, but most of the time the majority of media only attacks white people as guilty, and the rest of the persons such us: black people, gays, muslim are always the wounded. In many cases the media has continually talked about hate crimes started by mentally disturbed persons or impostors. According to researchers ‘’A lie can travel around the world and back again while the truth is lacing up its boots’’- Mark Twain. Many times, the impostors are caught due to fallowing investigation, but it is already too late because the harm has already been done. Then the media does not pay any attention at all to the truth, and the information is spreading all over the country to those groups of which the perpetrators belong, and they also intervene in the lie. To give an illustration, on 29th January 2019 Jussie Smollett a celebrity, who is black and gay, stated to police that two masked guys, made fun of him and beat him, the support offered for Smollett after the story was a top one among the actors and politics. But for those who had another point of view for the ‘aggression’, were attacked by the press and social platforms as being guilty or deniers. Importantly, on February 20, the police found that the whole report was false, and Smollett was convicted of the crime.

What is more, in the United States during presidential election, Donald Trump and his followers were put in a false light due to these false actions brought by the perpetrators. There are many points in support of this view. Firstly, a man from Indiana who hated Donal Trump sprayed on a church ‘’Heil Trump’’, but after he was caught the man recognized the crime and said that he wanted to ‘’mobilize a movement’’ against Trump. Secondly, a black man in Mississippi, sprayed on a African American church ‘’Vote Trump’’ and set it on fire, burning it to the ground, making the media to point to Donald’s supporters, but in a short time the man was caught and admitted that he had something personal with the church. Thirdly, in North Carolina, an Indian owned a shop where his front door was set on fire and a note was left behind, witch said ‘’We need to get rid of Muslims, Indians and all immigrants,’’ signed by ‘’White America.’’ But the committer, a black man, was caught by a surveillance camera in a short time.

Conclusion

Nowadays, the media is used as a tool to inform people and as any tool in the wrong hands can be used as a weapon, and this weapon can be a propaganda. However, for this essay about impact of social media we can conclude that social media is playing a silent roll in our daily lives. It has been bringer people closer and strengthening bonds between each other. It all lies in the mind of the beholder, how they make use of it. One can create a revolution or lead his own demise. Let us make the best out of social media and create a better place to live.