Social Media Paper week4

Social Media can be defined as the forms of electronic communication that allow users to create online communities in which to share information. These forms of media make it possible to transfer text, photos, audio, video, and general information among internet users. In this paper we will identify three different social media networks and describe how they are used. An explanation of the advantages and disadvantages of social media and how they alter how a person would use social media will also be provided. Facebook, Myspace, and Linkedin are three social media platforms with which many internet users are familiar with. The creation of these platforms has resulted in the formation of online communities where individuals can share information about themselves with other members. The use of these sites allow people to stay in connected to friends and family members, meet new people, and update information about themselves to share with others. These sites can also be used to post photos, upload videos, and link to other sites. Businesses have also found the advantages of using social media networks like Facebook, Myspace, and Linkedin. These sites give businesses the ability to advertise products and services in a manner that allows information to be easily searched, shared, and promoted. Organizations can also benefit through the use of social media platforms like Facebook, Myspace, and Linkedin. These sites help organizations promote their cause, fund raise, and inform individuals.
Some of the advantages of social media for individuals include the ability to stay in contact with friends and family members who live great distances away. Instead of a weekly or monthly phone call or the occasional letter in the mail people can use social media to chat, send pictures, and update their status whenever they would like. This can help friends and family feel more connected. Some of the disadvantages of social media for individuals include it may cause some fights and drama between friends and family and more of the he said she said nonsense, which nobody likes. It can cause people mainly to misunderstand each other and get caught up with bad things. People are not always who they say they are and people on sites like MySpace and Facebook like to play games with people’s heads and it can become very messy and cause problems between many people, very fast and very easily.
A huge advantage of these social communities has a reverse side effect that is also a big disadvantage of social networking: they reduce or eliminate face-to-face socialization. Because of the autonomy afforded by the virtual world, individuals are free to create a fantasy persona and can pretend to be someone else. It is hard to say no, be rude, or ignore someone when you are looking them in the eye. It's incredibly easy and quick to unfriend or unfollow someone or simply block their efforts to make a connection. Just one click of the mouse and your problems are over. Unfortunately, this feature of online socialization cheats people of the opportunity to learn how to resolve conflicts in the world outside the Internet and it could retard or cripple one's social skills developments.
Many social networking sites incorporate an instant messaging feature, which means you can exchange information in real-time via a chat. This is a great feature for teachers to use to facilitate classroom discussions. A study by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation shows these networks can be used as effective vehicles for students to pursue self-paced online learning. In addition, the Internet is the ultimate online textbook. Students no longer need to take out six library books at a time. Much of what they need to know they can find online. School is not the only setting where this type of real-time information sharing can be beneficial. Social networking can provide a tool for managers to utilize in team meetings, for conference organizers to use to update attendees and for business people to use as a means of interacting with clients or prospects.
Social Media can be good thing and a bad thing to have in your life at all times. Yes, it is great to be able to stay in connection with friends and family but, at what cost is it affecting your day to day life? I think we could all use some free time without our cell phones not too far away, we need to learn to enjoy life again and not be so caught up in everyone else’s life on a daily basis. My generation is being affected my social media more than ever and it causes many problems between friends and family, more bad then good, in many people’s eyes. This is our world and it is changing and growing faster than ever, we need to keep our eyes ahead and open and not let it pass us by in a flash because, we are focused on other people and not ourselves.