SNS Assignment 3, Part A

Parth Zalawadiya

VISA 1500_01

Dr. Terryl Atkins

Assignment 3, Part A

Social media is a platform through which exchanging of ideas and information takes place. There are so many websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking communication such as Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok and the list goes on.

Personally, I use tiktok as a source of entertainment and I use instagram mostly to communicate with my friends and family. Tiktok has some positive aspects. Since social networking sites are operating worldwide; they tend to break some of the cultural barriers between the different parts of the world. I have been watching a lot of people’s videos from all around the world. I learned a lot about other people’s culture and the way they live through tiktok. Moreover, usually after I’m done working or I’m done with school, I would go on tiktok. It has endless entertainment and funny videos. Personally, it usually gets rid of my day’s stress. However, it does have some disadvantages. I think that someone can get addicted to TikTok Really easily. I usually restrict myself to 30 minutes a day of watching Tiktok.  On the website Myayan the author said  “As this app tends to host more and more content, kids are becoming addicted to its overuse. Tik Tok app has turned into a database for videos to attract users of all ages. Kids are more likely to turn into the stuff shared through the Tik Tok video app. Such addiction is resulting in distress among parents as well.” (2021) Lastly, some of the videos that the user posts tend to be offensive to people. Social networking users are so addicted to this website that they detach themself from the real world. This has an adverse effect on society.  I saw a lot of violent and hate speeches  and I think that the owner of Tik Tok should work on that.

Furthermore, there are some positive aspects of using Instagram platform to communicate. “It improves communication with people, the number of friend lists increases, the professional network also increases which is helpful, and you can exchange the information with friends and the family in an original way.” (Hebba Soffar, 2020) I share a lot of pictures on instagram and I try to reply to comments and comment on people’s pictures as often as possible. I think that it’s a great way to communicate and network with new people. However, on instagram I think that a lot of people do not provide their real identity. It happens that when young people discover the real identity of their online friends; they will be disappointed, and even depressed. The amount of time users spend online with fake friendships could eventually hurt them in the long run. I found a lot of accounts on instagram that are fake, spams, asking for money and posting some inappropriate content. I think that Instagram should work on deleting these accounts so that people can avoid being scammed.

Instagram and Tik Tok are not that different. I use Instagram and Tik Tok both for entertainment purposes. However, I only communicate on Instagram. I think that it’s easier and that I can fund the right person to network with on Instagram compared to Tik Tok

My behavior changed over the past year because I increased my screen time using social media. This happened especially because of covid. I was most of the time at home and I would work from home and when I’m done working I will be on social media sites. Moreover, since i’m going to university now, I’m using a lot of social media such as Whatsapp or Linkedin to communicate with my friends and peers.

References

Www.myayan.com. (n.d.). Major Advantages and disadvantages of TikTok Video app. myayanblog. Retrieved October 31, 2021, from https://www.myayan.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-tiktok-video-app.

Soffar, H. (2020, May 5). What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Instagram? Science online. Retrieved October 31, 2021, from https://www.online-sciences.com/technology/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-using-instagram/.