Today Is Social Media Day, But I’m Not Celebrating
June 30 has been named National Social Media Day. I guess that means we are supposed to celebrate all the social media platforms that we use to communicate, but I'm not celebrating.
Of course, I do have a presence on all the popular social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat – and while I have posted anything on TikTok, yet I do have that as well.
The way I see it, social media has magnified our personalities, allowing us to express ourselves but also allowing us to exposes ourselves. I like to relate it to the saying "drunk words are sober thoughts," in the same sense what most of us say on social media wouldn't necessarily be what we would say in person.
What I'm getting at is social media has become an excuse for our behaviors, both good and bad.
It's a lot of "Hey, I did something good today, everyone look and see my good behavior" and the same works for not-so-good behavior. You may be familiar with the term "did it for the 'Gram."
Do I think social media has played an important role in helping people find their voice or, more importantly, create awareness around problems that exist that we wouldn't have otherwise? Absolutely. But as much as I want to celebrate social media and all the good it has done, I can't help but think of all the bullying and false information that has caused so much harm to so many. It's a double-edged sword, I guess.
If you chose to celebrate today it's as easy as using the hashtag #SocialMediaDay when you post on your favorite social media platform. I'm still on the fence on whether I want to celebrate, but I don't think I will. Will you?