This article argues that Facebook has diminished the barrier between what we consider our private or public lives, because it seems almost inescapable. The author reflects on coming home after a long day when he was young and being able to think and have moments of peace alone. He says “Coming home each afternoon and having long spells to unwind was essential – in fact, it was in these daily quiet periods that I began to get some vague sense of who I was.” The author feels that those moments alone are decreasing, as we become more and more addicted to platforms such as facebook. Without any reflection to find ourselves, we may begin to forget who we are in the midst of it all.
In the article, the author also talks about how people are beginning to lose a sense of who they are because of how much social media affects decisions we make. The author quotes statistics showing that a significant amount of people lie about things from who they are or where they work. With only 18 percent of people saying, Facebook accurately represents who they are. This supports the article’s claim that FaceBook is not a representative of our authentic selves to the world.
I can definitely say social media has left an impact on how I view everything around me, my friends, news and the world. There are a lot of stories and information about things on different platforms which are not always accurate. I can say social media has made me more motivated to get accurate information before I form an opinion about something. When I first used social media I was about 15 years old in High School. Instagram and Snapchat were the first accounts I used, I originally didn’t want anything to do with it. But through peer pressure I ended up signing up for my first accounts. Me and my friends social media profiles are accurate representations of us in real life. While things may not always be perfect in any of our lives, we are still always motivating each other and people we don’t know either. My goal with social media was always to show an accurate portrayal into who I am and what I value. I always like to motivate and encourage people who I amy not know as of yet, and also meet more people
I agree that being able to sift through and not believing every piece of information that’s on social media is important and has led me to making sure I know all the facts of a certain situation before making a conclusion.
I made similar points in regards to social media affecting our private lives by causing us to continue our act as the “perfect” version of ourselves, even when we’re in the comforts of our own homes. People falsifying info on their social media to appear in greater light is a prime example of this.