Social media, most of us use it and all of us at least know what it is. Websites or apps designed where people can create and post content of their liking and socialize with other people online. Over 5.66 billion people worldwide use some type of social media. This can include Tiktok, Youtube, Instagram, X, Snapchat, Facebook ect. Though there are some pros to social media, like staying connected with friends and family online, creative expression and digital literacy, and rapid access to information and awareness, there are also cons to social media as well.

My first con of Social media is bullying or to be more specific cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is when you use technology like social media, gaming, or texting with the internet to harm, humiliate, or scare someone. Examples of cyberbullying include harassment, exclusion, spreading false rumors about someone, doxing, and impersonation. According to the article on Brownhealth, “Every 7 minutes a child is bullied. Unfortunately, intervention is rare, with an adult intervening in only four percent of cases, and a peer in 11 percent. An astonishing 85 percent of all cases of bullying are not addressed”(Dalomba Mar 1). This can unfortunately lead to kids comiting suicide. Suicide is one of the most leading cause in death for kids under 14 and cases where kids between the ages of 11 and 14 who commit suicide has increased more than 50% and kids between th ages of 10 and 14 are low but slowly increasing.

My second con to social media is how fast it could turn into an addiction. The algorithms on social media platforms are designed to keep you on their app as long as possible. Algorithms are designed to learn the users interests and what type of content they like and show that content on their for you page. This could lead to the user doom scrolling and becoming more addicted to the app which could affect their sleeping patterns, their attention span, as well as lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness.

My last con of social media and this is more towards teenagers is the exposure of inappropriate and harmful content. According to the National Library of Medicine, “Up to 95% of youth ages 13–17 report using a social media platform, with more than a third saying they use social media”(National Library of Medicine). Which gives kids access to a lot of content some of which may not be age appropriate for them. Everything from extreme content to online challenges can affect their physical and mental being. For example, content about unattainable physical ideals could lead to eating disorders or for teens feeling insecure about their physical appearance.