Social Media:

A Web of Confusion

By

Travante' Boyd
English Composition 1020
Professor Elizabeth Kent
April 20th, 2016

Table of Contents
1)Idea web..pg.1
2)Essaypg.3
3)Interview.pg.6
4)Letter..pg.9
5)Short Story....pg.11
6)Posterpg.13
7)Timeline...pg.15

Preface
For my research paper in English 1020, I wanted to get a better understanding of
the pros and cons of the use of social media and to argue that not only does it have
positive appeal to the general public due to its convenience and the benefits that come

with it, but there is also a dark side. Social media and networking, even though they give
you the opportunity to interact with friends, family, and make new acquaintances, have
multiple detrimental aspects about it thats changing the course of modern-day
civilization as we speak. Throughout the course of this paper, I plan to start off by
constructing a concept map of a few particular aspects that Ill be stressing throughout the
project. By creating this, I want it to act as a central focusing point, per se, to keep the
readers head in the game on what Im talking about. Afterwards, I plan to construct an
essay, giving an explanation of the topics I place into my concept map. Then, comes an
interview where Ill be getting the opinions of fellow colleagues and any other sources I
may be able to get in touch with to gain some valid information. Ill later transcribe what
Ive learned to construct a letter to a government official or anyone high ranking that
governs whats put out on social media and networking sites explaining to he/she why the
need readjustments are well needed. Coming towards the end, I will be writing a personal
narrative on my experience with social media, then Ill finish off this paper a small poster
highlighting some of my ideas and a thought out timeline depicting some events that has
transpired over the years where things put out on social media have caused mass
animosity.

Social Media Is a
Cancer

Desensitiz
ation

Questionion
g of selfidentity

Encourages
Violence

Social Media
is a Cancer

Affects Mental
Health

Deconstruction of
social norms

Deteriorati
on of self
worth

Explanation.

I decided to create an idea web for my first entry as means of acting as a reference
to the information I will be introducing throughout my research paper. An idea web is a
great way of keeping myself on task as well. The worst thing that can happen when
working on a rather lengthy assignment is to basically get lost in translation. As a
means of acting as a guide, I intend to use this as a visual to keep my mind focused on the
goal of my paper. This goal, in short, is to demonstrate that social media is actually much
like cancer, which is a hazardous ailment that slowly saps the life out of its host. In this
example, our civilization is said host, where social media is the parasitic organism eating
away at its infrastructure and tearing it down. In my idea web, the concepts I listed show
some of the effects social media has on us, even if we recognize it or not. One of my
entries say that social media has an effect on mental health. Now dont get it twisted, just
because you might go and watch superman all day doesnt mean youre going to go crazy
and think you can stop a bullet with your bare hands. No, it doesnt work like that but in
some individuals, social media has adverse psychological effects on them. My case and
point, the Aurora movie theater shooting that occurred a couple of years ago. A man by
the name of James E. Holmes, dressed up as a famed supervillain from the Batman series
and went into a fully occupied theater and unloaded on multiple unsuspecting civilians
with his mission being to kill as many people as possible. Even though unintentional,
social media played a role in this just like it does in many other problems that are
plaguing the world.

Did You Know?

Throughout the world, the use of social media and networking sites are global.
From the modernized all the way to the less fortunate civilizations, the effects of the two
are felt worldwide. Social media and networking are like a cancer, slowly eating away at
the concepts and morals of our society. Even though they give us the opportunity to
interact with friends, family, and even aid in forming bonds with new acquaintances, have
multiple negative aspects that are impacting modern-day civilization. Once cherished
attitudes and behaviors are being swept under the rug, even some of those that are held as
traditions. A couple of the aspects mentioned earlier that I will be discussing are the
promotion of violence, mass desensitization, and the deconstruction of social norms.
Violence is everywhere so dont get me wrong when I say that its all brought
about through social media. Violence has been around since the dawn of time as a means
of survival, but these days that violence is being exploited as a means of entertainment.
Social media has a very influential grasp over all those that use or view it, especially our
youths. Youth who oftentimes are continually exposed to violence in the media result to
violence to solve their problems.(Bostic) Social media practically promotes violence
because thats all you see in it. These days there are even videos posted called fight
compilations which is nothing more than a montage of people beating each other over
meaningless drama. Continual exposure to violence like this can have adverse effects on
youth that can lead to a display of antisocial behavior and desensitization towards violent
acts.(Bostic) The youths of our nations are to grow and become its leaders. With their
minds being jump-started with this malice, the future looks grime for future generations.

Social media is a highly credible source for mass desensitization throughout

civilization. To desensitize someone is to basically make them become less prone to
becoming squeamish or put in a state of shock from witnessing acts that are explicit,
grotesque, or cruel. The things that are put out today across social media are no exception
to this. There are no holds barred when it comes to the content that is put out for the
world to see. These days, you got people of all ages, including kids, doing drugs, acting
out, and engaging in adult activities all because of what they are exposed to on social
media. They do what they do because they were socialized to believe that its cool to do
so. Its disturbing going down my timeline and seeing girls who are like half my age,
recording themselves shaking their ass for likes and followers. Like damn where is your
sense of self-esteem or respect for that matter?
The norms of modern-day civilization are being deconstructed, slowly but surely,
and not all at once. Norms are things that put in place to represent the proper way to
behave. The set that governs different cultures act as, simply put, a rule book on what
things are deemed acceptable and those that arent. For example, its common courtesy to
be polite to everyone, even those who are strangers and to treat them with kindness and
respect. These days with the outbreak of social media, those norms are changing. Not
only here in the U.S. but even in places far across the globe such as Africa for example.
Before the youth of Africa were introduced to social mediaAfrican children were
respectful. (Djanie) The youths of Africa, who held things such as respect sacred were
corrupted by the influence of social media.

To make a long story short, social media can best be looked at as a corrosive agent
set to break down the foundation of the old ways of civilization and come in with a new
tide of ideas that are set to deem what is acceptable and what isnt. The changes being
made are not good, and if we, the people, continue to stroll on along this road then well
be headed down a path of self-destruction. Its almost as if we are being brain-washed
into believing certain things and behaving a certain way by the government. If they were
to place better regulations on the content being released to the public and the content that
is allowed on social media then the world would quite possibly be a better place.

Usage of Social Media

For this portion of the assignment, I got together with a few colleagues as well as
a few outside sources to gather information on how others view the use of social media in
our society. I asked a small set of questions to each of them individually, and they
responded accordingly.

I. What is your take (thoughts) on the use of social media?

V. Bell: My takes on the use of social media is that it is quite toxic to our society.
The generation we live in is so easily influenced by things that happened in the
world. Kids today will see something on the internet and try to go out and do it. I
wouldnt necessarily say that our generation is dumb or stupid but there is a lot of
knowledge being lacked, so much to the point to where it is dangerous.

A. Smith: Social media is the reason for many of the problems occurring across
the globe now as well as some of the solutions to these problems. It can be used to
raise awareness for an important cause, so thats a plus but it can also be used to
spread hate, especially among young adolescence.

T. Jones: I believe social media is a great way to communicate with people,

however, the use of social media affects the way people communicate in real life.
In the generation we live in today not many people know how to properly hold a
face to face conversation with a person along with talking on the phone, so the use
of social media is handicapping us and it is affecting the nation.

II. Do you believe that the use of this social construct is changing our
view on social concepts?

V. Bell: Yes it is. A lot of older adults now think that social media
is not even safe enough for use because of the horrible influence it
comes with and lack of knowledge being spread all throughout the
world and society.

A. Smith: Yes, because back in the day people had to meet face to face in order
to communicate with one another instead of communicating with one another via
a cellphone or websites such as Facebook or Instagram. Years ago there was no
such thing and the only means of communication was face to face which brought
about healthier relationships with other people.

T. Jones: Yes, because with the use of social media people are slowly losing the
ability of being able to hold a conversation face to face with others.

III. Do you feel that its beneficial or harmful?

V. Bell: Yes.

A. Smith: I believe that it is harmful to be honest.

T. Jones: This is harmful because well for one, if you arent able to communicate
face to face then it will be hard to get a job later on in the future.

IV. Why?

V. Bell: Social media is both beneficial and harmful. It can be beneficial for
informational purposes and staying connected with friends and family from a
distance. Yet it also has its harmful effects because of the negativity and horrible
influence. What a lot of people in my generation dont understand is that what
goes on the internet should stay on the internet.

A. Smith: Social media is big distraction and it causes problems in our

generation. For example, students who attempt to multi-task by checking social
media while studying, have shown to perform less academically compared to
those who dont. Another thing is if we didnt have it then thered be less drama,
and quite possibly less crime.

T. Jones: Most jobs require employees to be able to communicate with all kinds
of people. If your communication skills arent up to par then more than likely you
will not get the job.

V. How can the use of social media be improved upon?

V. Bell: This can improved by possibly banning social media or at least

attempting to put better age restrictions on social media usage. Social media

influence is a big problem and can easily be stopped but it takes work and effort
to do so.

A. Smith: In my opinion, if social networking and media sites such as Twitter,

Facebook, Snapchat, etc. were deleted then the world would be a better place.

T. Jones: I feel like this situation can be improved upon by limiting our time on
social media daily. If we take time away from our phones, computers, and any
other electronic devices and take time to talk to our family and friends face to face
I believe our communication skills will improve.

Letter
Travante' Boyd
7440 East Drive
Montgomery, AL 36117
334-244-3615
Tboyd5@aum.edu

Mark Zuckerburg
Founder/CEO
Facebook, Inc.
1 Hacker Way
Menlo Park, CA 94025

Dear Mark Zuckerburg:

This letter is to inform you that your site is having a negative impact on
society. As a fellow consumer, I tend to spend my fair share of time on your
site as well as others and I must say one thing. You and your staff have to step
your game up on regulating what content can be displayed on your website.
You are one of the leading social media/ networking sites to hit the market.
Mr. Zuckerburg, I understand that you, along with others, crafted this site in
hopes of being able to connect people throughout the whole wide world and
theres nothing wrong with that, but you must understand the fact that all
forms of social media are influential, both positively and negatively.
Everyone, including their grandma, are using your product but the real
problem comes in when our youths are exposed to some of the content posted
on there. The youths of today are to become the leaders of tomorrow but
judging from the things I see on your site, I pray that you make reparations
before it gets any worse. Young people are so easily to get swept away with
the current trends that are going on around them. Sites like yours act as a
means of free advertising in a sense due to the freedom to post whatever.
Better regulation can be beneficial to the growth of a healthier civilian body.
These days, there are so many provocative things basically being promoted
through the use of social media, for example, twerking. This little trend
started off as a joke but now its everywhere. Young women bending over and
shaking their ass. There is nothing classy about that and its not something
that we should condone in.

I pray that you make reparations to your site and spread the word to other
sources. Stop aiding in polluting the world, and help rebuild it.

From a concerned individual,

Travante Boyd
Travante' Boyd

Short Story
As the light began to get dimmer, her vision slowly getting worse. There she lay
on the bathroom floor questioning her life and if her existence on earth was as important
as she thought it could be. Already suffering from severe depression and having low selfesteem she somewhat realized if this was all worth it. Was it all worth making her life
even more of a living hell than it already was? At that moment as she silently cried to
God above for help and guidance, she could only think about what had been happening to
her for the past two weeks. The mockery, the horrible and disgusting lies that she had
seen about her plastered all over social media. Shes fat, Shes ugly, She will never
amount to anything in life. The more she let her mind ponder upon all the horrible

thoughts the more pain she felt internally. The more tears that fell, the more she clenched
onto that halfway empty pill bottle. Too many thoughts going through ones brain at once
can be quite dangerous, so dangerous to the point where that person may just explode.
Mariah couldnt take it anymore, she had enough. Do you really think that the best way to
solve all of her problems was to end her life? Mariah had plenty people who cared about
her and they would be devastated if she died.
So we ask ourselves today, do you think that the person who is responsible
for all this hurt and pain that Mariah is enduring is aware of what she is doing? Well of
course not, most cyber-bullies are not aware of the damage that they are causing until
something traumatic has taken place, such as someones death. Amber had been cyberbullying Mariah over social media (Facebook) for the past two weeks. Amber is thinking
to herself that because people are laughing at her jokes and egging her on to just sit and
talk about Mariah even more over Facebook is whatll make her popular. What Amber is
currently failing to realize at that very moment while she is in the process of making yet
another hurtful post about Mariah, is that while trying to be cool she is in the slow
process of ending someones life. Is being cool really worth someone losing their life?
No, that should never be the case. The definition of cyber-bullying is as followed, the use
of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an
intimidating or threatening nature.
So some may wonder whatever happen to Mariah. Did she die of an overdose? Was someone able to catch her and help her before it got any worst? Were any
adults aware of what Amber was doing? Could Amber possibly go to jail for what she had

done? To answer all of those questions, Mariah in fact did not die. But she is now under
24 hour suicide watch because of her near over-dose until further notice. The horrible
things that Amber had been doing was finally brought to the table and she was handled in
the proper manner. People in this world need to open their eyes and realize that social
media is not the safest place. It is not all fun and games. It is dangerous, bad for your
health, and causes too many deaths in our teens today. So always remember think twice
before you type.

Poster

Explanation.
The reason why I decided to design this poster in the manner that I did is to show
the horrible effects that social media has on our generation. Social media is bad for your
mental health. It can cause serious addictions to drugs and can affect ones self-esteem. I

used the danger signs and skull bone pictures to symbolize the ultimate dangers behind
self-engagement in social media that so many people fail to understand. Social media has
positive effects but mainly in our generation it is causing havoc and producing too many
problems in the world outside of social media. Social media is slowly but surely dumbing
the world down as we speak. It can also lead to depression that is caused by
cyberbullying. Most people who cyberbully arent aware of how they are effecting the
person being bullied. Simply because as they are in the process of bullying the victim
they cannot see that person face to face. Which causes a lack in knowledge about the
possible pain that the victim is enduring. A distraction is another way I explained social
media in the poster. Most of our generation is so distracted with what is going on in social
media that they are not even aware of what is going on in the real world that can actually
have a long term effect on our generations future. Lastly it can cause insecurities, there
are so many picture perfect images of people on social media posed as if you do not look
like what you see on social media you have no worth. Which can cause lack of selfesteem and self-worth. Social media is toxic to the world and will continue to be toxic is
no one puts a stop to it.

Timeline

ne

Explanation.

The reason behind why I decided to do a timeline on some of the events that
occurred during the Ebola crisis was to symbolize a time where the world practically
went haywire. As I mentioned numerous times throughout my research paper, social
media has a huge impact on all those exposed to it. One could literally take something
that is small and unnoticeable , tweak at it a little bit then post it somewhere for the world
to see , and if done right, can give rise to major hysteria and animosity. I found that the
Ebola crisis was a prime example of this. Yes, it was a rather concerning event but I feel
as though the constant tweets and Facebook posts saying things like, Ebola causes your
body to rot and you commit cannibalism ridiculous. I mean honestly, zombies? Really
people. Things like this you would think no one would pay any attention to but low and
behold there were some who did, a lot at that. It got so bad at one point that there were
small grade quarantines being placed around different areas of the U.S. Yes, Ebola is
highly contagious, but if contracted it is not the end of the world. The way this ties in
with my topic is that the government has the power to regulate whats put on social media
and it seems as though it is allowing things that provocative or grotesque as a means of
reformation. One day everyone was going crazy over this epidemic and the next no one
cares. Once the government stop promoting awareness of it, everyone just slowly
drifted away from the idea of it. Yes, Ebola is still around but its as though that once
scary viral strain has been dumbed down to something less.
The information in this entry is not concise. I found multiple different sources all
listing different dates that similar events occurred so chose the ones I felt were more
accurate.

Works Cited

Bostic, Brittany. "Does Social Media Perpetuate Youth Violence?"

Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center. Regents.umich.edu,
20 Feb. 2014. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.

In this article pertaining to social media, YES Research Assistant

B. Bostic explains how social media is corrupting the minds of our
societys youth and perpetuating violence amongst them.
Throughout the article Bostic mentions how social media has
literally changed the way of how violence is viewed in our society.
At one point in time, the amount of violence was not as severe as it
is now. In todays society, violence is viewed as means of
entertainment, especially amongst our youths and that is not good.
She recognizes that our society is slowly being desensitized to the
idea of violence. Social media is nothing more than a hub to
promote violence.

Brunskill, David. "The Dangers Of Social Media For The Psyche."

Journal Of Current Issues In Media & Telecommunications 6.4
(2014): 391-415. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web.
11 Apr. 2016.

This source is credible because its an academic journal found on

the library database. Basically, this article is stating that social
media is affecting us on a psychological level. Mainly, pertaining
to young adolescences and those a little older. The idea of selfidentity is brought up in this article as well. As stated in the text,
people who use social media on the regular tend to hide who they
really are and portray themselves as something theyre not through
the use of social avatars. These are nothing more than a faade
people put up to mask their insecurities and this is not good. In
other words, social media is causing people to become socially
inept and at the rate things are going, that will not be changing
anytime soon.

Djanie, Akua. "The negatives of social media on African youth." New

African 2015: 40. Academic OneFile. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Looking at just the title alone, one can come to the conclusion that
social media doesnt have its claws only in more modernized
civilizations such as the US for example but also those that do not
have the type of resources countries like this have. In this article,
the author speaks on how even a country that values its tradition
and holds them sacred are being influenced by the grip of social
media. Yes, the new technological advances have brought about a
tremendous change in the African culture by giving the Africans a
means to stay in touch and interact with the world around them.
This is a good thing, dont get me wrong, but with the good must
also come the bad. As mentioned in the article, before social media
was introduced into the culture, the youths behaved as they were
supposed to. They respected their elders, didnt talk back to adults,
and did as they were told with no questions asked. After the
introduction of social media, all of that went out the door. Its the
complete opposite of what it originally was, and that just shows
how powerful an influence social media has.

"Ebola Outbreak: A Timeline of the Worst Epidemic of the Virulent

Disease in History." ABC News. ABC News, 29 Nov. 2014. Web. 3
May 2016.

I utilized this source as an aid in creating my timeline on the Ebola

crisis. This source laid the foundation of this entry and proved to
be pretty reliable. Along with this one, I looked at other sources as
well pertaining to the timeline and all the sources had different
dates that pertained to similar events. The best I could do was
choose the information that seemed the most viable. In using this
source, I wanted to list events that caused a huge shift in the way
people behaved. At one point, everything is going haywire, then all
of sudden once attention is brought away from a subject, its bare
existence begins to fade into nothing. At least thats what it seems
like from my perspective.

Hossen, Ame. The Effect of Social Media on Students. Monrovia

Weekly, 1 Mar. 2016. Print. 3 Mar. 2016.

In this source, Hossen is speaking how social media is affecting

students both negatively and positively. She states that in many
settings, students find themselves trying find a means of escape
and some do so through the use of social media. While in class
there are a million different distractions that are just waiting to
entrap another victim and that trap is mobile technology such as
cell phones, pagers, etc. Hossen states that social media is a
detrimental factor to students trying to get their education. These
kids are school to learn and get their education. Not to go and post
stuff on snapchat or twitter. I feel as though this source could be
beneficial to my work, but as far as standing alone on its own to be
evaluated then that is questionable.

La Ganga, Maria L. "Taped Interview of James Holmes." Los Angeles

Times. Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2015. Web. 3 May 2016.

In this source, I felt that this would be a great example that

portrayed what I meant on how social media effects the psyche of
some people. In this source, we have a man who dressed up as a
costumed villain and murdered multiple people solely off of a
whim, stating why he did it. Like most villains portrayed in social
media, they all have diabolical plans to commit some form of evil,
and this man was simply following suit. Not everyone can handle
what is put out in the world, even little things such as violent kid
cartoons. Yes, children cartoons these days have violence in them,
but nothing too graphic or provocative.

Mesch, Gustavo, and Ilan Talmud. Wired Youth : The Social World Of
Adolescence In The Information Age. Hove, East Sussex:
Routledge, 2010. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 3 Mar.
2016.

In this book, Mesch and Ilan have compiled research involving

technology and online communication, through social media and
the like, and the effects of its usage on society, mostly pertaining to
adolescence. Throughout the book, the authors mention how young
adults basically live to surf the web and be on social media. Its
like their lifes blood to be out there and seen by the world through
social networking sites. The internet is changing the social norms
of our society. The way people communicate with one another, the
way they perceive one another, and the way they act in social
context are all being readjusted due to whats being put out there in
social media. This source speaks bars in my opinion.

Probst, Caitlin. 10 Ways Social Media Affects Our Mental Health.

Degreed. 15 Apr. 2015. 10 Apr. 2016

With this source, youre basically getting a rundown on some of

the detrimental aspects that follow behind the use of social media.
Caitlin Probst feels as though social media not only hinders our
physical health but our mental as well. I know one of the key
aspects she mentioned was the concept of multitasking. Okay, I for
one, multitask every day and I never once thought that it was a bad
thing. If anything Id say it was a great means of being productive
but it would seem the exact opposite is true. According to Probst, if
one multitasks then he or she is not fully absorbing the information
being taken in which in turn causes a decrease in efficiency and a
lack of production. It makes sense if you honestly think about it.
Its like trying to look in two directions at once, it simply cant be
done.

ProCon.org. "Are Social Networking Sites Good for Our Society?"

ProCon.org. 13 Apr. 2011. Web. 2 Mar. 2016

This source is basically one big blog post of Pros and Cons on the
idea of social networking. In this source, there is a diverse group of
people giving their opinions on if they how they feel about social
networks and if each individual believes that social networking
sites are good for our society as a whole or not. This source is a
vital one for making my letter due to the fact that I am getting the

opinions of those who have probably put in research into this idea
beforehand. It has both its strengths and weaknesses but I feel it
will be an invaluable source.

"Social Media and Society: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly." Seochat.
Devshed, LLC. Web. 24 Mar. 2016

This is another good source for me to use for my research paper

because within this source, the author of this article is basically
discussing his viewpoint on the whole idea of social media. In their
point of view, social media has a positive impact on society and I
feel as though I can use his ideas on how things are positive in
order to make a counter-argument stating the negative aspects or
impacts. I can use positive ideology to form my negative if that
makes any sense, but all in all this seems to bode well with my
research topic and I plan to use it as effectively as I can.

Worsham, Sabrina Lea. "Media's Influence on Social Norms and Identity

Development of Youth." Applied Social Psychology. Creative
Commons, 28 Nov. 2011. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.

In this article, Worsham goes into detail as to how social media is

causing the young people of society to have a different sense of
self-identity. Things on posted on social media define what is to
be classified as normal in our society. From the things we wear,
the things we do for entertainment, all the way down to the things
we eat on a daily. Self-identity in young adolescence is so
important and I feel that this is a fundamental subject to talk about
because it ties in so well with my topic and can prove to be very
resourceful towards constructing my essay.