Has the Pandemic made social media more problematic? | November 2020
You could say that quarantine and social media might mean we
are stuck to our screens 24/7, which it has to some extent, but have we been
more passive with our engagement or has it resulted in more active progress on
our social media platforms?
The global pandemic
meant that travel stopped everywhere, the posts of people on their luxury
holidays and in amazing hotspots around the world have been dwindled down.
However, that doesn’t stop social media users comparing themselves to people
due to their socio-economic positions for example; if they have work, or you’re
out of work...if they can afford to buy certain things to keep them occupied
during lockdown whereas you’re sitting in your room staring out of your window
bored out of your mind. Saud, Mashud and Ida argue: “social media platforms have become significant
tool for
communication and
the continuation
for the
people's routines”.
I think that is what is key – a routine, and for some people social media was
their only sense of routine and stability during lockdown.
On the other hand, I have witnessed the posting of ‘body
transformations’ being extremely beneficial, creating a positive community for
those that are working towards their goal and being happy in their own bodies.
That may come as a contradiction, but I think some ‘body transformations’ such
as BusyBeeCarys’ profile
promotes body positivity in addition to fitness. By adhereing to these profiles
and messages, the ‘body transformation’ trend can be extremely inclusive and
benefit the message around it.
The pandemic have seen a rise in people on their social
media, engaging in the ‘ideal body type’ which evidently can be triggering to
people with eating disorders and body issues in general, however the positive
side is the community and sense of achievement, it all relies on the mindset
and the way it is presented on social media platforms.
Social media is also a fantastic creative outlet for
individuals and groups, a solid example of this would be TikTok. This relatively
new social media, as it was launched in 2016, has reached an epic 2 billion
mobile downloads, which I can only imagine was elevated rapidly during the
pandemic. The app is very inclusive and to the majority of cases it provides light-hearted
entertainment for every age group – just what was needed in a global pandemic.
However, there is of course a bad side to everything...
An example of this would be a man livestreaming on TikTok,
and whilst doing so he shot himself with a gun. To his viewers it was obviously
a horrific sight to witness, but what also came to question were the morality
and harming to the users of TikTok. The viewers that watched that scene would
most definitely be traumatised and mentally scarred, so what comes in to
question is what censorship can social media provide when you have little way
of surveilling what people will do online, and what actions they will take. To
some extent, social media is an expanse of free speech, action and creation—how
can we trust it? In a pandemic, when mental health issues are rising also,
problematic social media echoes scandal and exploitation of young people and
what they are being exposed to.
There is a fine balance between problematic social media, and
social media as an escape. However, within a pandemic, the pressure to keep yourself
entertained may result in starting your own TikTok account, aspiring to be as
famous as Charli D’Amelio, or aspiring to be the ‘perfect body type’
problematizes social media as a pressure inducing hotspot for young people to
feed off.
The pandemic has challenged us to highs and lows, and I’m
sure social media has been a remedy to a lot of people, but from a wider perspective
it can also be the cause of so much more.
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