SOCIAL MEDIA.

Twitter, Instagram,, Tumblr (for the really cool folks), Facebook (because let’s be honest, it’s still useful for filling forms online, choosing “Log in with facebook” saves so much time!).

All these platforms, and much more, make up the powerhouses of “social media”. A place where people share their views on topics that can vary from debating about eating rice with a spoon or a fork right up to pressing current issues like Xenophobia in South Africa or the #BlackLivesMatter movement in America.

Social media is now a dependent source of breaking news; I remember the times when we had to wait for a reporter to get to the scene of a crisis before the news got out. Now, we get video coverage from passer-byers who upload the content to news outlets, some even happily report live from the scene, all with their ever so handy smart phones or tablet devices.

Clearly social media has had a positive effect on society and has proved its usefulness thus far. However, just like any coin, there is a reverse effect that social media has on society too. Since it’s advent, there has been an increase in the need to please or gain approval from absolute strangers. There has been a rise in identity loss among youths, as several young people now gauge their self-worth from the number of ‘likes’ or followers they have.

TAKE A STEP BACK.

There’s more to life than likes and follows, don’t degrade yourself for people who don’t give a hoot about your life. Some girls have apps on their phones that clears their skin, cinches their waist, expands their hip width – amongst many other aesthetic alterations, then they post the picture on twitter and get loads of Retweets and Favourites. Should you then compare yourself to that person’s caricature and feel low? God forbid!

Use social media to positively affect your life and leave it at that – you’ll be a much more happier person :)