What is social media?
Social Media refers to interaction among people in which they create, share and / or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.
*”Social” -refers to instinctual needs humans have to connect with other humans.
*”Media:- What we use to make connections with other humans.
*”Social Media”-Media used for social interaction.
Some of the popular social media tools / websites
*Blogging Platforms
(Tumblr, Blogger)
Mobile Platform
*More than half of India’s one billion population is under 35 years of age and is at the forefront of mobile phone revolution.
*More than 50% of youth in metro city prefers Whatsapp / WeChat over SMS.
*Increased irrational use, prank calls, unwanted message / interaction.
Some facts
*India has 125 million internet users, on an average, Indian web users spend 26 minutes online each day.
*87.1 million users experience internet on their smart phones and this number is expected to grow to 165 million by 2015.
*Age group of 15-24 are the highest number of social media users, on an average Facebook is visited atleast thrice a day.
*67 per cent of the teenagers are friends with strangers!!
*Cases of Cyber bullying, Fake profiles are increased in a huge number.
*Thoughts of the youth are being manipulated with increase in use of websites.
Negative effects
*Teens who use Facebook more may have psychological disorders including antisocial behaviours, mania and aggressive tendencies.
*Can be distractive. People check Facebook / Whatsapp very frequently.
*The Desire to Compare: We compare ourselves to others in terms of looks, travelled destinations, shopping sprees, friends and so on.
*Radiation : Phone calls, internet over phone, even idle phone has a lot of radiation around it.
*Eye problems : Prolonged use of display screens may weaken eye sight.
*Addiction : Internet shopping, online chatting can be addictive.
*Effect on health : Sitting all day in front of laptops / computers may disturb body metabolism.
*Reduction in physical activities.
Positive effects
*Helps in conversation around the world.
*Data, information can be exchanged easily.
*Money over SMS can be saved by using Whatsapp.
*Information can be directly sent to large number of people easily.
*Helps in avoiding boredom.
*A local businessperson may expand his business over the websites.
*Helps in making friends and meeting new people.
*Helps in seeking new job offers.¬¬
