Do you think that social media has made people's lives worse or better?

[exitseven]

Worse

Better

The Same

Other

Crazy

[sage2021]

Some people are addicted to social media and can't goo even a few hours without it. We had a security lady that couldn't even do her job when something needed her attention. She would sit at the front desk and put her cellphone on her desk and admitted she was addicted to Instagram. She referred to her phone as being like one of her children.

[TheLittleInnocent]

Depends. For me, its made my life sooo much better

[exitseven]

what did you find on social media that is so good?

[TheLittleInnocent]

Well for one I met my boyfriend on there. And at some point I fell into a deep depression because of some stuff that happened in my life
It was horrid. But talking to other people online who understood my situation helped a lot. Even better than the therapy I was getting. It's easier to open up to a stranger. Made a lot of friends.

[exitseven]

that is great. I actually met a few people here that became friends.

[Screenwriter]

There's nothing wrong with social media. It's how people USE it that is at issue. If people go out together, sit at a table and spend time looking at their phones instead of talking, what is the point of being together?

Do we have to check our messages or answer phones when with someone else? Unless you're a surgeon or doctor on call, you don't have to check your phone when with someone else unless it's about a job, or an appointment that's necessary.

A neighbor was surpriaed I didn't have my cell phone with me when I work in my garden. I don't want to be interrupted. And I have DIRT on my hands, or gloves. There's nothing i have to be contacted about when I'm gardening.

And it's about time. How much of your life do you want to spend on social media? Do you want to bike, exercise, cook, sew, paint, write, make model airplanes, read or work on your degree? Well, you have to limit social media time. Just like you have to limit any entertainmen time.

And that's what social media time is: ENTERTAINMENT. Though people say their LD social media contacts are friends, they're merely acquaintances if you've never met them in RL

And this is another serious rub: People thinking that LD non-RL people they've never had interpersonal contact with are "friends" or that they're "in love" with someone they've never spent time with and have never met. This is how people have been bilked of hundreds of thousands of dollars by liars and con men and women. This is how millions have been "catfished."

In addition, there is the anonymity that allows people to say outrageous, hurtful and violent things about someone they don't know and have never met. Because they're damaged people and social media allows them to spew their damage where they unable to do so before. Cyber bullying and abuse is real.

But on the other hand, the internet has allowed virtual communities that serve many purposes to be created. Zoom and Teams has allowed classrooms, meetings and appointments to be set up. It keeps families in touch visually and verbally where this hasn't be able before. It's a boon to military spouses.

Social media is a source of information as well as misinformation. Separating one from the other can be troublesome.

As with ANYTHING, there are users and abusers. but it's all about the people who use the technology for good or for ill. The technology by itself is useful and amazing. It is an incredible source of knowledge and convenience. It is a source of good when used well. But there are always those who abuse positive venues. The point is to be a positive social media user.

[exitseven]

As usual you make perfect sense. I work at a college and watch kids walking between classes. They travel in groups but they all are looking at their phones and nobody is interacting.

[Diodoro]

Net Positive

Rekindling old friendships, relationships, starting new ones, scheduling events and going to them that you wouldn't otherwise have known about.

Job opportunities, business opportunities, trading opportunities, easier access to sales. More money to be made in general with social media. I know people whose lives have fundamentally changed solely because of the existence of social media

Facebook groups that you can use to interact with higher-quality individuals. So even if you're someone who is stuck in a slums not due to your own choosing, you have the opportunity to be around high quality individuals and bring yourself out of it

Social media is largely an experience you cater for yourself and it's very much on you to manage it. Where people go wrong in my opinion are people who spend a lot of their time interacting with people they dislike and don't give a shit about them.

Are there downsides? For sure. And if you're not using it for those positives I listed above I personally feel you should delete it. But overall social media is positive

[ShadezMcgee]

I believe it has made society worse as a whole. The idea behind social media was to create a gateway and advertise online for businesses to reach prospective clientele. That eventually grew into interpersonal websites that allowed people to connect like Facebook, MySpace, etc to allow others to keep in contact with each other.

The more this grew the more it became accessible and oriented towards people to people interaction for messaging, games and connecting using photos and posting statuses and lifestyle to create personas. It shows the best parts of your life, not the in between. It is a projected reality to sell one's self to the world and show you are somebody. As a result, it has become a subconscious competition to who has the most followers, who sets a stupid trend, who has the best life, who is worth listening to all based around perception that is created.

It has made relationships weaken and taken away the basic concept of face to face communication to the point that everything is just a pointless commodity that is neither strong or weak based on the level of one's perceived value.

To add to that, it has been dangerous in the sense that content is more easily consumed and available to people at a mere click of a button. It doesn't take much for misinformation and narratives to be misconstrued or twisted for personal gain or because the evidence or information isn't concrete. It is a game of telephone gone awry and soon you have over ten different stories on what happened, etc.

It has created division as a society and lowered our strength and weakened our relationships with loved ones and friends to the point that it is almost pointless to have them now in the first place.

In short, yeah. It has made things convenient to a degree, but it has done more harm in the long run than anything.

[WhiteSteve]

I mean…. I’d say one of the guiding principles I follow in life is the idea that the majority of humanity are basically worthless, horrible meat sacks not worth saving or doing good things for, I have no good faith in the common decency of people on a species-wide level. Some will have good points, but almost everyone I meet has at least one flaw that discounts everything else and makes me say “I wish you were not an alive person.” I wish I didn’t feel this way, but I’m just operating off the data I have.

So that said, anything that gives a public voice to the eating, breathing garbage piles that are humans is probably a terrible, terrible thing, lmfao.

[NathanDavis]

based on the people I actually know from my real life circles... the seemingly happier, the smarter, the more successful and the healthier ones have no social media accounts or they use it a lot less... this is broadly speaking and generalizing, of course...

[Smashingdoozy]

Both. Some people have formed unhealthy habits others have formed life long friendships and reconnected with people.

[exitseven]

If you got here a little earlier you would have gotten the MHO. Really good answer.

[Aerissa_Jade]

While it has it's uses, it is turned again people all the time.

It is also made people less friendly, turned a lot of them into trolls. I rarely meet someone in person who talks the same way in person as they do online.

It is like social media turns them into a monster.

[MCheetah]

Much worse. People are more selfish, arrogant, and intolerant thanks to social media giving them the illusion that all their opinions are right. Social media has made people live in a bubble separated from reality.

[jennifer_bloom]

I don’t socialize very often so I’m glad for digital technology but I find maintaining conversations is harder online, and sometimes I don’t know what to talk about.

[DizzyDesii]

It made people more nosey, vulnerable, insecure, judgmental, and hoeish. So i definitely would say worse

[TrueConfection]

I don't exactly have a positive view of social media.

[Fromdusktilldawn]

Bad rumors, conspiracies, fake news, hoaxes spread faster. People seek more and more attention, and get addicted to it. People get frustrated and jealous a lot. Bullying is easier by anonymity

[Leonharted]

Despite its best effort, better. It has allowed people to bypass the press.

[loves2learn]

Crazy is the only logical answer 🤪🤪🤪

[exitseven]

that is why I put it in there,

[OddBeMe]

Same. Communication tech has improved lives overall, but social media isn’t responsible for our racism.

[Lovesims3plumbob]

The very worst drama was cyberbullying by learning disabilities women in the group, I also have a learning disability. I am not here for drama or shit people or users. It was on Facebook and also did happen in college

[qwert1234]

It depends from one person to another.
If that person let's social media perceive a reality where everyone lives their lives in success, then it's bad. Almost no one posts the downs, only the ups.

[najekim]

Worse. People are relaying on apps too much to text to one another than to go talk face-to-face.

[Starla1234]

Worse for the most part, but there are some (very few) advantages to it.

[bolverk]

It seems to encourage the slightly unhinged ones to go totally nuts. but I will admit that they also help families spread across distances keep in touch such as UK to Australia.

[Wiredone]

I think for some people it made their life worse because they are addicted to it. It hasn't changed my life since I'm not on it a lot, except for here.

[whirled_up_girl]

Worse, I feel like I wasn't so busy or distracted before social media.

[humanearth]

Look at life before internet and now. Who was better off

[exitseven]

okay- I had a long distance relationship before there was social media. We wrote letters and once in a while splurged on a phone call. It was unimaginable to think we could have had instant communication that did not cost an arm and a leg. Also video calls and texts. However, I read questions on this site from people in LDRs that are totally clueless and the technology dos not seem to help.

[humanearth]

On that end, I get it

[douride2]

It has made people crazy.

[Anonymous]

Worse. It's the equivalent of smoking nicotine. People (especially girls) can't quit that crap.

[dustybiker]

Poisonous fruit.

[Tee_12]

There are both pros and cons of it

[msc545]

Different!

[exitseven]

is that a good thing?

[msc545]

sort of

[exitseven]

very definitive answer. 😎😎😎😎😎

[Hispanic-Cool-Guy]

Better at least for me. Good entertainment.

[emperor90]

Worse because people always show off