Hi everyone! It’s Wednesday, and it’s time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2024 here. If you’re interested in reading other people’s responses to this week’s topic, you can do so here.
My Thoughts on Social Media
As I suppose many people do, I have conflicting and complicated thoughts on social media.
In theory, it is such a good idea. Think back to before we had any online connection; the world was much smaller. Then, the internet blew it wide open.
Social media is excellent for sharing information, promoting yourself (which I primarily use it for), and keeping in touch with family and friends who have moved away.
However, there is that other side to it, isn’t there? The side we’ve probably all run up against at one point or another: ‘the bad’ side.
At one point (in the olden days), trolls only lurked beneath bridges, trying to gobble up the Billy Goats Gruff, but these days, they’re literally everywhere; they are in every online social platform, social app, and in the comments of every website.
It seems that the purposes of social media have gotten lost somewhere, and now it feels like many (though certainly by no means all) people use it to spread hatred.
Perhaps it’s the cynic in me, but it seems that more and more people are joining socials to simply rant and rave into the ether, venting their frustrations and disappointments, disregarding the fact that the people who end up reading their posts are thinking and feeling human beings.
Like I said, though, where would we be today without social media? It’s definitely bettered my life; it helps to get eyes on my work. I have had so many uplifting messages of support and notes of thanks from people who were touched by one of my books, stories or poems that I never would have received without being on social media. In fact, I would still be living in my ‘negative nellie’ mindset of self-doubt and self-sabotage when it comes to writing.
Then, there are all you lovely people whom I’ve met and spoken with through this blogging challenge. I have to say, deciding to take part last year (and again this year) has changed my life in no small way. I have been forced to examine my life through some of the topics we’ve been asked to write about, learning a great deal about myself and you along the way.
So, as I said, how I feel about social media is a complex question, and I have no specific solid answer. It has myriad pros and cons in equal measure.
Well, that’s me. I can’t believe we’re on post 27! I’m curious to read all your thoughts on social media — I’m betting there’ll be many differing opinions today!
As always, thanks for stopping by to read my words. I appreciate it so much.
Until next time,
George
© 2024 GLT
Categories: life, Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge
GEORGE L THOMAS 
As usual, your response took a lot of the things that were zooming around in my mind and made them, you know, intelligible! You’re spot on. I think it’s a bit of a metaphor for most things in life though – it’s rare to find anything that’s entirely good. Most things come with up and down sides, and a lot of them depend on who is wielding them. Social media is no different. It can be used as a way to connect, to show support for important issues, to learn and to uplift one another. But, as you said, it also has the “bad” side, and that can often seem much bigger. So it’s a hard one, because you have to take at least some bad with the good. I think it can be worth it, but I do find that I will use one for a while then step back when it gets overwhelming or unpleasant! I am grateful more for the blogging community, because I do feel like it’s much more of the genuine interactions than proper social media, and I have “met” some wonderful people (like yourself) because of it! I also very much value the forum to discuss – having a place to share my thoughts on books I read and hear others’ responses is a hugely positive thing, and I enjoy a lot of the discussions that come from the link-up posts just as much. So I think this little corner is a very wonderful one, for sure!
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I agree with everything you say. Socials can be great, but yeah, as with everything, there are downsides. It certainly helps to have a thick skin.
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This is a great answer. And I’m glad to have met you, too.
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Aw, thanks, Lydia! Likewise! 🙂🙂
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Much depends on what we’re counting as social media: the book blogging community here and on goodreads, for instance, is far more amenable to “good” uses than reddit or twitter.
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I agree! Twitter is not the same as it used to be.
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Yeah, finding good online communities can be incredibly rewarding, but a lot of social media sites aren’t well-moderated and don’t have adequate tools to let you moderate on your own. I do sometimes miss the days when chatting online happened more in the comments on blogs and other less-broadly-public spaces.
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I actually blame censorship for what social interaction does get through the barrage of “top-down” commercial dreck on Twitter these days. Let’s face it: although the majority of Twits at least used to be moderate to Right, Twitter’s always been owned by the Left. Right-wingers, including moderates like VP Pence, were bullied and censored. If they stayed around, they want to tell Lefties what they think of them. Lefties have or soon develop similar feelings about Righties.
Only ten years ago everyone wanted to be “moderate” and the parties were calling for “polarization” just to give people a reason to join a party…and look at us now!
I think Ds started it by forgetting that they were supposed to be “more liberal,” and Ds really need to stop it. They need to proclaim that censorship is un-American, that letting idiots freely babble on social media about plans to commit crimes actually helps police prevent those crimes, whereas Twitter’s censorship of Prez Trump actually prevented his “thank you for coming out, now go home” message from reaching the tourist types at the “peaceable rally to show support” on 1.6.21. They need to defend everyone’s right to say anything that’s not covered by existing laws about threats, slander, harassment, etc. They need to take the old ACLU policy and defend people’s right to say things that almost everyone finds abhorrent, right up to the point of making specific, credible threats.
(Test this on myself…do I defend people’s right to wave signs saying THE WRITER KNOWN AS PRISCILLA KING IS A HORRIBLE HORRORCOW and chant “Die Pris die”? Sure…it’d be a good way to know whom to avoid. And meanwhile people who would otherwise have no interest in me would feel moved to express support, which might actually benefit me.)
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I have connected more with people I interactive with on other blogs and their a discord group I’m part of from watching some booktubers.
Well some areas on the internet are great. There are some areas that are more divertive. Especially with the pollical BS.
I prefer to be on my own blog and interact with other bloggers.
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You’re right, Snapdragon, a lot of the Internet is excellent, and I do think these days we’d be lost without it. But there are areas that could use fewer trolls. I’m glad you’ve found a place online where you can interact comfortably with others!
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