The question “Is social media good or bad?” is one that has sparked lots of arguments among people. While some people could swear that social media has more pros than cons, others feel it’s not worth it. So I decided that it would be amazing to bring this topic on here and see what you lovely lot have to say! Just before we look at the question – Is social media good or bad? Let’s take a look at the meaning of social media.
What is social media?!
Wikipedia defines social media as interactive technologies that allow the creation or sharing/exchange of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks.
It wouldn’t be right for us to answer the question – Is social media good or bad? without first looking at the pros and cons of social media right?! Let’s briefly look at some advantages and disadvantages of social media.
Advantages of social media
1. Social media helps create awareness.
Social media helps us to be aware of certain happenings around the world. Take for instance, the global pandemic COVID-19. During the period of the pandemic & lockdown, social media was a great way to keep ourselves aware of the pandemic, educate ourselves on how it works and what to do to prevent it.
2. Social media is a source of income for millions of people.
A lot of people earn a living through social media. Social media has provided tons of job opportunities for people and all thanks to social media, a lot of people have daily bread.
I am a blogger, and I am sure that other bloggers would completely relate to the fact that without social media, getting an audience/getting people to read their blogs would be way more difficult (especially in the initial stage of just starting out) as they would most definitely have to go through the hassles of learning SEO to get audience lol.
And, if you are a blogger like me, you definitely know that lack of engagement/ lack of audience or substantial amount of page views equals lack of companies that want to work with you. It’s simple! Let’s maths the maths.
Little to no engagement or pageviews = No companies want to work with/collaborate with your blog.
Though, regardless of the presence of social media, I would highly recommend that every blogger learns SEO. Learning Search Engine Optimization (SEO) gives you more freedom as a blogger, enhances your reach, and even gives you something to fall back on in case social media decides to go extinct one day.
I have met some bloggers who rely solely on social media for their blogs and are doing extremely well and making thousands of dollars from their blogs. Well, that’s how powerful social media is.
But, here’s the downside.
As a blogger, if you rely solely on twitter for example, for engagement and pageviews on your blog, if twitter decides to close up and go out of business forever, you would be back to little to no pageviews/engagement. But you know what? Search engines like Google would always be here. Get it?
3. You can increase your network and build connections with social media.
Having a great network can help you in more ways than one. And, social media, if utilized properly, can be a fabulous way to build your network and connect with different people from all over the world without even having to meet them in person.
Social media has helped me build personal and professional connections with people in and out of the blogging space. Recently, I got a remote job offer sent straight to my email. Guess what?
The email stated that I was recommended by someone (the person’s name was included in the mail). The crazy thing is that I met this woman via Twitter, have never met her in person but I built a professional connection with her, did some jobs for her which she was extremely satisfied with.
And boom, several months after working with her, she recommended me to a huge company. Aaaaaaaaand, I got the job 😭. That’s just a snippet of how far connections with the right people can go. Emphasis on “with the right people”.
4. Social media is a great space for learning
The amount of things I have learnt on social media cannot be overemphasized. Social media, well, depending on the how it is used can be a huge learning space. Even the accounts you follow can be an avenue for learning. I took a whole course on Public speaking via twitter spaces and it was fantastic to say the least. You are probably wondering why I keep talking about twitter lol. I love twitter.
5. It is a source of entertainment
After a long day at work, school, both, or just a long day in general, social media can help you relax and have fun. Afterall, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”
Research has shown that social media is one of the leading sources of entertainment. You can watch YouTube, watch people drag each other on Twitter lol, view pictures on Instagram and whatnot. Indeed, social media is a huge form of entertainment.
So if we ask ourselves the question – “Is social media good or bad?” We know that social media definitely has some positives!
Disadvantages of social media
1. It is a huge source of comparison.
Social media paints a perfect picture of almost everything so much to the extent that people start to compare their lives to what they see on social media. I’m 19 now, and extremely confident to the point where nothing I see on social media moves me.
But, at 15, I used to be a victim of comparing myself to people on social media. What’s more alarming is that over the years, I have realized that a lot of people are fazed by social media. More fazed than they realize/are willing to admit.
Few days ago, I was speaking to a friend and she opened up about how insecure social media has made her feel and how social media has made her feel like she isn’t pretty enough, not good enough, doesn’t have the perfect shape and all that.
Well, I was taken aback by the fact that people are still disturbed by the things they see on social media. I thought everyone already knew that social media is far from reality and not everything we see on social media is true.
But, giving things a deeper thought, I realized that social media actually has a negative effect on how a lot of people feel about themselves. It’s not just the said friend, but a whole bunch of other people.
I think an important thing everyone should realize regardless of what they see on social media is that “no one has it all together”, “nobody’s life is perfect” and the idea of a perfect life only exists in our imaginations. We just have to be content with ourselves, who we are, where we are, etc. It should and always be you versus you, the goal should be progress (Are you better than you were yesterday?) NOT you versus the things you see on social media. The only person you should try to be better than is who you were yesterday.
2. It is addicting
The amount of people addicted to social media is alarming. Stuck to their devices and always scrolling through feeds when they are supposed to be doing so much more with their time.
Many youths, teenagers, and even adults waste more than 10 hours of their day on social media, not doing anything reasonable but just scrolling aimlessly. This is a huge disadvantage as time lost cannot be regained and aimless scrolling is an absolute waste of time.
Since it is obvious that the claws of social media addiction could have a strong grip on anyone, I try to take control of how I use social media and I take a break off social media every once in a while.
Again if we ask ourselves “Is social media good or bad?” We know that social media has some negatives as well. What now?!
After all that has been said, is social media good or bad?
Read this: Why you shouldn’t give a fuck about haters
Is social media good or bad?
Here’s what I think! Everything has pros and cons. I blog and there are advantages and disadvantages of blogging. In my opinion, social media is an equal mix of good and bad. The advantages of social media are hands down amazing, and the disadvantages cannot be ignored either.
Butttt,
The effect social media will have on you boils down to how consciously and effectively you use it, how you absorb the things you see on there, and how you let what you see there affect you.
We have control over a lot of things in our lives. One of which is how we let certain things affect us. We have the ability to not let ourselves be bothered by the negative things we see on social media. Inhale the positive and exhale the negative.
What do you think? Is social media good or bad?! Or is it a mix of both?! Let me know in the comments!
This was a really interesting read! I think overall I’d have to say social media is good – I wouldn’t have gotten through the pandemic without it – but equally it can really impact your confidence. Thanks for sharing, this really made me reflect on social media x
I think like anything powerful, social media can be used for good or used for bad, it just depends on who’s in control and how much of it you allow to impact you. Great post!
This was a really interesting topic, Ruth. Throwing a curveball, I would say social media is a force for good as it’s an outlet for many things which otherwise wouldn’t get seen or talked about (I’m talking about in repressive regimes in particular). Yes, you shouldn’t always believe what you read, it’s good to be informed and then make your own choices.
Ironically as I write this, some platforms such as insta have crashed. It shows how much we depend on them when we miss them so quickly.
Social media is such a double-edged sword. I find it to be a really great place as much as I find it a negative space to be a part of. I tend to go in cycles of it being an affirming and positive experience to it slowly becoming something that makes me feel anxious and/or depressed (for all sorts of reasons like the ones you experienced and outlined here). As soon as I feel it becoming negative I take time off from it and don’t actively engage in it other than to upload related to my blog, etc. I really appreciate your perspective here as it’s encouraging to know that others find social media to be something that can be good and bad.
Very interesting read! I have seen a lot of debates on whether social media is good or bad and I think having a healthy balance is the best way. I personally don’t spend too much time on social media because I am very much an “in the moment” person. But of course promoting my blog and connecting with others I do as much as I can because I love those things x
I think there are definitely positives and negatives of social media. I got rid of my personal Instagram because I couldn’t deal with the constant comparison and now, I only use it for blogging, and I follow accounts that make me feel good 🙂 I think social media is all about how you use it, and whether it is good for your mental health. Thanks for sharing x
Agree, I like social media for being able to catch up with friends, I don’t really fall for comparing myself to others. What I absolutely hate is the loss of nuance in debate – it’s just a load of people shouting at others who don’t agree with them, yelling every 20 seconds.
Social media is both good and bad. But unfortunately, the bad side of social media you rarely have a choice in, like dealing with trolls, scam advertising, and so on. The flip side to that is that social media keeps you connected with people and news.
This is a great post! Social media definitely has its pros and cons. I love that it’s great for communication. But I hate how addictive it is x
To me, social media has both good and bad impact. It depends on the user. Users must be able to control themselves and use social media well.
Interesting post, and I agree with you that it’s a mix of good and bad x
Like you, I didn’t tend to use social media until I started blogging and my opinion of it so far is, it is good for the promotion of oneself but not good if you want to find the truth or depth behind anything. I tend to stay in my own lane when it comes to social media. I only follow those who have similar interests, although at the beginning I followed everyone 🙂 But as for being good or bad, I would have to say my life hasn’t benefitted from social media; it wouldn’t bother me if it never existed. But then where would I find all the cute cat pictures. 😉
The debate on social media is such an interesting one. There’s studies that suggest that people who are already vulnerable or struggling with their mental health may find social media unhelpful. And particularly I think that’s because it can be so easy to compare ourselves to others. But I also think everything boils down to how you use it. If we curate our feeds to be full of things that boost us and connect with people that are supportive. Then we can find an amazing community online. So, it really depends how, when and why you use it!
I think the question whether social media is good or bad is rather relative. I believe (like with anything) it’s how you use it that determines how it affects you. I think in a lot of ways social media & technology has benefited the creative minds of people & it’s a way to express oneself. But I do see the negative side effects of social media like comparison, jealousy & not feeling enough. I think we have to develop a mindset that social media is always only one side of the story & behind closed doors is more of the reality.
Great post Ruth! I had written a similar post few months ago. As you have already pointed out social media is both good and bad. It all depends on how we decide to use it. I had given up on my social media accounts for years and I decided to create new accounts when I started blogging. When it comes to blogging social media is so much more than just a tool to bring traffic in your blog.
Social media can be really hard, but I’ve also managed to make incredible friends though social media. There are positives and negatives.
I personally think social media has a lot of pros. I fell ill in 2013 and spend a lot of time in hospital so having social media makes me feel connected with the world. That being said, I can totally understand the cons, especially with comparison! I think you’ve made some great points here and I love this post. Thank you so much for sharing.
I like and dislike social media. It is a great to connect with people. However, I hate that you have be perfect all of the time on it. I unfollow anyone who sells unrealistic things such as weight loss pills or body image. Thank you for sharing this interesting post.
Great post Ruth! I agree, everything has its pros and cons. I think it’s all about balance and knowing when to step away and take a break. I also agree that following positive accounts helps a lot! Thanks for sharing!
I mirror your feelings about social media – both the pros and the cons. I find myself spending a significant amount of time promoting my blog on social media but I’ve set limits which I find to be helpful. Great post! Thanks for sharing.
Great post, Ruthie! I think social media is what you make of it and, if you’re mindful to use it as a tool and not get sucked in, it can be really beneficial. However, it can pretty quickly become really toxic too -like you said, you just have to pick and choose what you read and how much you let it affect you x
mia // https://beautiful-inspiring-creative-life.com/
This is a very interesting post. Social media is a medium and the use of it is what can be bad. It conveys misinformation, people often present only the good sides of their lives which is a biased representation of reality and the algorithms are designed to create a kind of addiction. When we use them to be in contact with our friends and family, for business, for entertainment, to build connections or network and so on, this use of the medium is beneficial. I believe that it is up to each one of us to use it with discernment and to be careful. Thanks for sharing.
Social media is a powerful thing and I agree, it can be both good and bad for us in our daily lives. I think social media is what you make of it, it can either impact you positively or negatively, depending on what you do on it! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Social media opens up a world of opportunities, and I definitely wouldn’t be where I am today without it. On the flip side, I am notorious for comparing myself to other people I follow on social media and it affects me quite often. I think a social media declutter is overdue! x
I definitely think its a mix of both. Ultimately though, you have to tailor it to suit you. Only follow accounts that gives you inspiration and enjoyment. I also think its important to not let social media consume your life by limiting how much you use it. Its surprising how much you can miss out of real life when you are constantly staring at a phone or computer.
Gosh I think this is a topic that could be debated for days – if not weeks! I don’t think social media is inheritably good or bad. Like most things in life, it’s how you use it and what you do with it. It certainly has a lot of pros and cons. It’s an incredibly powerful tool!
Social media definitely is complex and I think it can be helpful and useful when used well and not in excess. I also found during the start of the pandemic I dove headfirst into social media which was not helpful at all! I’ve since learned that social media can be an awesome tool when used in moderation and you’re not constantly tethered to it! Thanks for this honest piece about social media and showing the balance, and that it isn’t a clear answer!
Definitely a conversation starter and I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on this! I personally don’t believe social media is bad if you can manage it properly. I never followed pages that didn’t fit my lifestyle or follow influencers (I think celebrities are different) or spend hours, and hours every day just scrolling. I think it gets a little unhealthy when you start believing what you see on social media and not being able to recognize that social media is fabricated. Like any other addiction, it gets unhealthy when it consumes your life, and social media has a way of doing that when it goes unchecked.
That being said, I had a great time on social media and had a healthy relationship with it, but I no longer have a personal Instagram (just re-opened a blog account) or Facebook. I made the decision to delete Facebook two years ago, and Instagram just last year and it’s been one of the best decisions to get off those platforms.
Social media made me lose some confidence in myself too. I think it has that effect on all of us. And I never had a lot of confidence, to begin with. I try not to buy into it too much like I look at stuff but I don’t let it affect me like it used to before. Social media is good for sharing your content and getting people to see your website or posts.
This is such a broad and personal topic, but I love how you have addressed it with the specificity of your thoughts! I find social media can discourage me if I begin to focus too much on what others seem to have that I do not. Focusing more on the community and connection aspect of social media is what makes it a go for me, but I love the idea of tuning my feed to see more of what I love.
Thanks for sharing!
I definitely go through periods of loving and hating social media. Apart from Twitter – I always love it! Really interesting read x
I think it depends why and when you are using social media. If it’s for business I would do it. But for pleasure it’s so stressful and tiring. Using social media too much is also bad for any of us. Great post!
I think there are so many positive and negative aspects of social media and like anything it is about balance. Knowing when it is harming your mental health is so important. Thank you for sharing this interesting read.
I’m really glad that you addressed both sides with fairly equal weighting, I think social media depends both on how you use it, and your own mental state at the point you’re using it. It’s great for blogging and can be an amazing way of meeting new people and making friends, but can be detrimental too. I know Instagram isn’t a great place for me and avoid it the majority of the time, but I’m really happy on Twitter and love the social element there. It’s really important to check in with yourself and recognise how each platform/ content creator makes you feel x
I agree that like everything in life there are pros and cons and in moderation social media has the ability to connect and bring people together. In excess it can in fact tear people apart. It’s all in how you use it and like you said, how you let it affect you.
Great post Ruth and a very important topic to discuss. I am one of the lucky ones who didn’t grow up with social media. I’m 38 and I signed up for my Facebook account back in 2007, when I was 24. I’ve only ever had Facebook to keep in contact with people around the world who I met while traveling. Now I live in Australia and it’s great to keep in contact with friends and family. I can count on one hand the negative experiences I’ve had, because I’m careful about who I follow. I’m also lucky that there was no social media when I was at high school as it didn’t exist, and I am so grateful for that. Otherwise, I’d be writing something totally different today.
Social media can be very damaging, but I don’t follow celebrities really, just travel accounts and a few people who I admire, so all I ever see on my feed are things that bring me joy and bring a smile to my face. That’s what social media does for me. I think no one should have a social media account until they are over 18. Live your life first, and not worry about this whole other world on the web. Great post! 😀
http://www.thetravelvine.blog
I completely agree that social media is both good & bad. I use Twitter all the time for my blog, I scroll through TikTok for entertainment & I also use Facebook Messenger to talk with my parents as they live in a different country.
However, there are downsides especially when it comes to comparison, but I don’t follow celebrity accounts & instead I follow accounts that have a positive impact.
I remember having to do a bunch of essays, presentations, and more about this topic. I definitely agree there are pros and cons, and social media kind of depends on what you make it. Of course, there are some things you can’t change such as perfectionism on Instagram, toxic comments on Twitter, etc. etc. But monitoring and being aware of who you follow and how it affects you is a big one! Thank you for sharing x
Social media is a mix of both good and bad but mostly negative in essence i must say. People from diverse areas may have different views. But at least social media can be something to rely on when all else in real life can’t be done such as mobility or travel constraints. Great post especially on the confidence part. xx
Isa A. Blogger
https://www.lifestyleprism.com/
Hi Ruth,
Very interesting.
I tend to think of all of the social media options as simply being tools. Tools for what depends on what you are using them for and what you want to get out of them. If Great Aunty Doris finds that Facebook allows her to stay in touch with a few friends from when she was at school then that’s fine by me. And if John ‘Use my affiliate links, please’ Smith wants to spam Bluehost links left, right, and centre that’s fine too. You just have to be able to tell one from the other! 🙂
If I was a ‘serious’ blogger then I’d probably use social media a lot more. But I’m not! I’m a hobby blogger and although I publicise my posts I’m not going to lose any sleep over it if I don’t get X amounts of comments, likes, re-tweets, or whatever.
To answer your question, I don’t think that social media is good or bad. It’s the way that people use it that makes it appear to be one or the other. Read more Great Aunty Doris and less John Smith 🙂
What an interesting read! I go through stages of loving and hating social media. Interestingly, since starting my blogs, I’ve moved away from my personal social media accounts and only really use my business accounts. And every 6 months or so, I have a no social media week – it does the world of good and reminds me that I don’t need to be online 24/7. Really great post Ruthie 😊
As a blogger, gaining an audience and getting people to read your site would have been much more difficult without social media. Social networking may be a terrific way to get away from what’s going on in the world and so much more.