It has become increasingly prevalent for individuals to stay connected with others by using social media. This essay attempts to shed light on both the merits and demerits of this tendency before concluding that I am in favor of the latter notion.
On the one hand, using social media to keep in touch with others and read news could be advantageous to a certain extent. Firstly, The advent of social media could be beneficial to those who live far away, including Facebook, Instagram, and the Zalo app which could allow them to stay informed and connect with their relatives face-to-face, overcoming geographical barriers and a sense of loneliness. Furthermore, connecting through online channels is cost-effective. By using social apps to read news and contact others through online channels, individuals should not spare any expense to buy printed newspapers or flight tickets to meet in person which are prone to cost-savings, allowing them to save their money for other purposes.
On the other hand, there are a host of compelling reasons as to why I am convinced that reading online news and staying informed with other users would adversely impact on life. One rationale is that this decision is prone to affect users’ mental health. To illustrate, young people are characteristically inclined to expend most of their time scrolling through social media and playing games on the internet which results in insufficient physical activities, leading them to contract severe illnesses such as obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes due to increased sedentary time. Another justification is that it may stand at a greater risk of identity theft and privacy concerns, putting detailed information, users could create a social account, which is accessible to everyone, leading to cybercriminals exploiting users’ data like sensitive videos, addresses, and personal identity used to fraud for money.
In conclusion, using social media brings enormous benefits such as breaking geographical distances and cost-effectiveness, I would contend that this trend could negatively impact users’ health-related issues and privacy breaches.