Debate #2

Adler Demac


Debate #2


October 14th 2015



                                                                 Social media- the death of  Generation Y 

             Social media is defined as "websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking". Social media was virtually entwined with the making of easy internet accessibility. In the early 2000's social media was created with the revolutionary Facebook. Facebook allowed people to connect with their family, friends, and even people they had never met before. Quickly following was the iPhone which brought hand held- internet to anyone willing to pay the large sum of money. The iPhone was fairly exclusive at this point, but soon, everyone had to have one. With iPhones came Instagram, twitter, snapchat, and many other social media applications. These apps were intended for good use, but soon we would all know what they were really used for. Social media acts as a trigger for cyber-bullying, child pornography, lack of social skills, and many other negative things.


             Child pornography. A reality in the world we live in today, and one that is fueled by social media. One social media app that is notorious for " nudes" is snapchat. Snapchat is an app that is used for sending photos of yourself to other people for up to 10 seconds and then the picture is " gone forever". As much as you hate to think about it, teenage girls AND boys are very easily manipulated, especially sexually. I have heard first hand of kids getting girls to send naked pictures to them, and it is sick. 


           Another major problem in social media is cyber-bullying. Cyber bullying is very easily done over social media because people feel as if they have more confidence through a key-board, rather than face to face. Bully victims are 7-9% more likely to commit suicide according to a study conducted by Yale university. Kids everyday are scared to go to school because of the fear that they might get bullied.


        Social skills are another thing that kids in the 2000's lack due to social media. The skills that every human needs to create our society are being taken away because before a baby can walk, it is given an iPad to play with. And by the time they are 10 they are on every social media app that you could think of, with hundreds of followers! Then, when they go out and have to communicate in real life with real people, they struggle greatly. There are many ways to avoid being socially awkward, but social media has made this task much more difficult.


       Lastly, social media and the internet has further encouraged obesity, which is already a huge problem in this grand old country of ours. When I was a kid, I was outside all the time. I would play with my brothers do anything that would entertain us. Now a days, kids get off the bus, go inside, and hop right on their tablet or iPhone. It is really sad to think that kids are spending the majority of their times indoors on the internet, rather then outside enjoying the outdoors. Social media is first for 
connecting people and meeting new people, but is not meant for children to get addicted to.