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In the current culture, Social Media is one of the most influential platforms that reveal the human condition. It has been making headways throughout America because of comments made by people. “Usl at the Stadium”, by Rivka Galchen is a narrative that presents a real-life situation where the main character deals with public shaming in response to inflammatory comments made on social media from an incident at a baseball game. Although social media has made leaps and bounds since its inception, it is its influence that has affected our culture in many ways such as reckless use of freedom of expression, negative impacts on mental health, and lapse in social skills.
I once heard that “The tongue is mightier than the sword”. (Wilmore 9) There is an increase in the reckless use of freedom of expression on Social Media. Due to protect constitutional rights in various countries, people are free to express hate, obscenities, misinformation, and harassment without any formal consequences as long as it falls within certain guidelines. For instance, in Galchen's narrative, the public made comments about Usl such as “Please rid us of your nasty pimpled ass and put a shotgun in your mouth tonight, I’ll buy the shells.” “He is a waste of decent seats, he can sleep at the nachos stand and give a real fan a view, lol.” (Galchen 75) after comments like the ones made about Usl the reckless speech did not diminish but instead increased. No one put an end to the comments and rumors being spread. In the U.S., all of these are types of speeches that are protected by the first amendment to some degree and therefore potentially provoke the inconsiderate behavior we see growing.
Another problem with Social Media is its impact on mental health. “With the constant fear of missing out known as FOMO or the addiction of wanting to be liked or accepted, we are seeing a growth in mental behavioral disorders that is affecting the youth all over the world.” People between the ages of 17-24 are at an impressionable period in their lives and find themselves highly impacted by social media based on studies. (Graham 68) Studies are showing that kids and young adults who spend most of their time on social media are more likely to develop depression, suicidal feelings, experience anxiety, and low self-esteem due to false expectations comparisons. “he was going to go and live there. When the time seemed right, in maybe ten or fifteen years, he would return to civilization.” (Galchen 78) The main character of Galchen's narrative thoughts under a moment of pressure makes one feel like they need to isolate themselves from society. The issue is growing in staggering numbers. Not that social media is causing mental health issues, but rather is affecting people in that age group more so than others.
Finally, there are social skills, that are slowly eroding due to Social Media. The entire narrative of “Usl at the Stadium” by Galchen represents how the social skills of society have fallen. The abusive habit of being on social media has reduced the functional interaction between people that is needed. In general, social skills are an integral part of society because it is an essential part of our ability to communicate effectively. Especially when it comes to nonverbal social skills. The ability to be empathetic, and to identify body language, eye contact, and facial expressions during a conversation. This allows us to convey, react or express ourselves appropriately so we can demonstrate understanding of each other's needs during a verbal exchange while showing respect. Without it, we may lead to the feeling nonconnected or engaged which causes an isolated feeling of possible loneliness. Finding ourselves with the inability to relate or react responsibly while having a conversation. This lapse in skill has been a concern in the behavioral changes of this current generation which results in a lack of respect and much more.
On the other hand, Social media's benefits come from its intended purpose of connecting people and keeping them informed. I’m not saying Social Media is bad, but instead, I’m saying they are necessary changes that are needed to prevent the likes of mental issues, physical issues, and moral issues from happening and becoming a nationwide epidemic. We as a people, for the most part, can agree that we want to prevent more of these online attacks from happening, but we have to get down to the core of the issue. instead, we should address these problems with safer and gradual solutions of preventative measures while potentially bringing upon tougher punishments for being irresponsible towards our fellow man altogether which I believe can be done.
In closure, social media's influence on culture has become a controversial topic because it has affected our culture in areas such as an increase in reckless use of freedom, negative impacts on mental health, and lapse in social skills. Across Social Media, we continue to debate this topic on the human condition and how we behave based on the exchange of information. Many things can happen after a post of an image or comment. Awareness and tougher oversight will only make irresponsible people own up to their actions. Therefore, leading to improve quality in the experience of social media while it facilitating a healthy exchange between people.
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