Does Social Media harm society more than it helps? There could be many different
opinions on this but overall, yes, it does in many ways. People may not see the ways it can harm
our society when trying to look at the positive side of it. Now there can be some positives in
social media, for example staying connected with family and friends, easy and quick access to
information, online learning and remote employment. The number of social media users is
always increasing. Just in 2023 there are around 4.89 billion social media users worldwide.
Which has increased by 6.5% in the past year. It has become a big part of many people’s lives.
Social media increases the lack of face-to- face interactions, cyberbullying, and privacy
concerns.
Face-to-face interactions negatively affect humans through social media. When talking
on phones and texting this leads us away from in person social interactions. Texting can be very
impersonal, and messages may be misinterpreted. It can be a poor means of communication in a
poor way to build relationships. Though text messaging can reach many people at once and a
person can receive an instant reply it is also a cause for distraction and misinterpretation. As a
society, people can get so caught up in our phones that we can forget how important it is to
communicate or associate ourselves with people around us. The more social media is used the
more we forget how to act in public through conversations. Conversations can tend to feel
awkward and boring which brings more people to be less social.

Cyberbullying is another negative effect that takes a huge toll on people including their
mental health, increased stress levels, depression, and self-harm. Social Media is a place where
we are thought to display a perfect image of ourselves and our lives. Have you ever experienced
someone that tried to troll you online whether it would be through a phone call, text message, or
any social media app? No matter if you have or not you know it is a very scary thing to
experience and starts to become overwhelming. Social acceptance has become an important
thing in society, especially for teens. According to teen safe there is about 87% have witnessed
cyberbullying and 34% of teens have been actual victims of cyberbullying. When this continues
to happen to a person it could start taking a toll on people and their mental health, sending them
down a dark hole where they feel stuck and leading them into depression and suicidal thoughts.
30% of teens who have been bullied online have suicidal thoughts. When people are given
freedom on social media, they think they can do whatever they want when really it is hurting
someone inside.

One of the most important things when using social media is your privacy. When we sign up for
a social media platform, we give out our private information whether it will be your phone number,
email, passwords, or even something you post. Tik tok is a big example of this. It is one of the fastest
growing apps with more than 1 billion active users monthly and around 50 million users daily. Even if
your account is private there are scammers and hackers out there that use the dark web to get your
information which could include your date of birth, contact info, photos, and videos you shared, your
current job or school, your age, race, and gender. There are many more things that follow behind social
media and what you share on your platforms. It is important to watch what you show on social media
because once it is posted you cannot take it back.

Social media has a big platform around the world and used by billions of
people. Social media has many negative and harmful effects on it including lack of face-to face
interactions, cyberbullying, and privacy concerns. Though social media has had positive effects
on society the negative effects have outweighed the positives. All these effects show the
downside and heartbreaking effects throughout society.