AFTER DARK
Is Social Media Becoming too Social? story by Megan Foster photos by Dylan Hanson design by Madilyn Larsen
Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok. Today these popular social media applications live upon millions of screens. These platforms fill the never-ending scroll that is overtaking electronic devices. Has our use of technology evolved too far beyond its intended purpose? What once were apps dedicated to communication and social interaction are now overtaken by trends, influencers and news. Is social media becoming too social? The Rise of Social Media
Contrary to widespread belief, social media didn’t start with apps like Twitter or Facebook. “In a sense, social media began on May 24, 1844 with a series of electronic dots and dashes tapped out by hand on a telegraph machine,” says an article from Maryville University. While social media has been present within society for over a century, it has evolved vastly through the decades. With technological advancement comes extended usage of these digital spaces. So, what has social media become in recent years? Is social media an endless 74
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pit of information, an ever-evolving tool? Or has social media become an undefinable platform altogether? The popular media apps today have expanded to every facet of society. What once were apps directed toward social interaction have strayed into the world of entertainment, news, dating and work. With new opportunities comes the potential for problems, but how is this true for social media?
Living in the Wake of the Digital Age
This ever-changing digital age has come with its changes, but many issues prevalent today started long ago. Professor Natalie Fish, a lecturer of Child Development and Family Science at Central Washington University, shares her opinion. “Is social media becoming too informational? Well, I would say there’s lots of misinformation,” says Fish. What now is referred to as “clickbait” can be seen in newspapers and magazines throughout the decades because it sells. Capturing an audience’s attention with shock, enticing them to read more and encouraging them to share, like and repost isn’t something new. Within social media today, information spreads faster and while this may present an issue within society, it wasn’t created by social media.
“The problems have always existed throughout the ages 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s. Here we are in the 2020s and these problems are still here,” says Mary Eberhardinger, a professor of Communication, Public Relations and Advertising at CWU. Issues present within society can be seen in cycles throughout history. Social media may be present during times of difficulty, but it isn’t at the core of these problems. “I don’t think it’s social media’s fault. I think it’s kind of low hanging fruit to blame. ‘It’s all Facebook’s fault. It’s all Twitter’s fault.’ As if Facebook has feelings and has dinner at night,” says Eberhardinger. Social media is a tool, but the actions taken on social media are up to the user. “We human beings have our hands on the technology,” says Eberhardinger “It’s up to us.”
At the Tips of Our Fingers
Through the internet’s advancements, the digital realm has expanded vastly, but is it just a common phrase that all the information is at the tips of our fingers through the internet? With the media becoming an ever-expanding realm of information, society’s means of access and usage are always expanding. Experts are beginning to question if social media has become less social and more media. “We’re at an inflection point where it’s less about the connec-