Social Media in the MeToo/GenZ era

[West]

Interesting article from the BBC of the impacts of social media specifically Twitter/X. Unreported SA cases, trolls targeting SA victims, etc. 

As our kids now use social media more than ever, what are the implications of this on the next generation? Certainly public policy is behind in alot of ways

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-64804007.amp

Edited February 5 by West

[Rebound]

This, and Musk’s anti-Semitic rants, are why I don’t use Twitter at all. Canceled my account. 
 

Nobody should rely on an information source which is certifiably fake. 

[West]

3 minutes ago, Rebound said:

This, and Musk’s anti-Semitic rants, are why I don’t use Twitter at all. Canceled my account. 
 

Nobody should rely on an information source which is certifiably fake. 

Certainly seems like technology has grown at an exasperated rate and we are now just playing catch up. 

[impartialobserver]

You could write about this topic for pages upon pages and never come close to articulating its impact on the younger generation. They are exposed to so much more information ( than Gen X or those before ) ever were. Its not even close.  At a certain point, the human brain can only process so much information let alone verify the quality/objectiveness of the information. 

[West]

14 minutes ago, impartialobserver said:

You could write about this topic for pages upon pages and never come close to articulating its impact on the younger generation. They are exposed to so much more information ( than Gen X or those before ) ever were. Its not even close.  At a certain point, the human brain can only process so much information let alone verify the quality/objectiveness of the information. 

It's wild because the disinformation on Public platforms can very easily get somebody hurt. As more young people (and even older people) spend so much time on social media, its certainly difficult to tell fact from fiction. 

It's a crisis that I'm sure will need to be addressed

[impartialobserver]

1 minute ago, West said:

It's wild because the disinformation on Public platforms can very easily get somebody hurt. As more young people (and even older people) spend so much time on social media, its certainly difficult to tell fact from fiction. 

It's a crisis that I'm sure will need to be addressed

It is difficult to tell the fact from the fiction especially when you have nearly limitless pieces of information that you are exposed. In the old days, you had a local newspaper, possibly a big city newspaper, a few magazines, and possibly a TV program or two. Now there is social media and everybody has an opinion, blogs, podcasts, hundreds of TV shows, hundreds of magazines, and then thousands of websites along with the newspapers. In today's world, you do not have to know anything in order to start expressing and publishing your opinion. 

[Michael Hardner]

37 minutes ago, West said:

Certainly seems like technology has grown at an exasperated rate and we are now just playing catch up. 

That's how technology has always worked.  I really recommend "The Medium is the Massage" by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore.

[West]

2 minutes ago, Michael Hardner said:

That's how technology has always worked.  I really recommend "The Medium is the Massage" by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore.

I will have to look it up. I'm definitely interested in learning more. 

[Michael Hardner]

7 minutes ago, West said:

I will have to look it up. I'm definitely interested in learning more. 

The key point: how we communicate ends up forming what we say and how we behave.  People can't see this effect, for the same reason a fish isn't aware of water, and they end up thinking that "something weird" is happening.

5.3 BILLION people or 65% of the earth is online now.  
https://www.demandsage.com/internet-user-statistics/#:~:text=There are over 5.3 billion,has access to the Internet.

And everyone has a megaphone that might be picked up.  Compare this to "media" only 20 (!) years ago that was tightly controlled by groups that had to have ownership/access to a radio station, TV station, Cable Network or large scale printing press.  

No wonder we're in such a mess.

[herbie]

24 minutes ago, West said:

I will have to look it up.

Yes more people should. 60 years late is better than never.

[Hodad]

1 hour ago, West said:

Interesting article from the BBC of the impacts of social media specifically Twitter/X. Unreported SA cases, trolls targeting SA victims, etc. 

As our kids now use social media more than ever, what are the implications of this on the next generation? Certainly public policy is behind in alot of ways

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-64804007.amp

You're right. Huge, huge implications on the next generation. Huge implications for parenting. The good is amplified, the bad even moreso. We have to talk to kids--even before puberty--about sex and sexualized imagery and language. About bullying. About suicide. Like, that has to just be woven into the fabric of childhood now before kids even hit double digits.

A young girl from a family my family is close with was, essentially, bullied to death on social media a couple of years ago, and it's not a rare story. With that volume of negative input, it's very easy for young people to literally feel like the entire world is against them and would be better off without them. And the harm is done so easily and casually it probably doesn't even feel like a big deal to the bullies. 

And all of it is made many times worse by platforms that deregulate. Twitter/X is a good example. The "free speech" ethos is all well and good until you end up with terrible, tragic real-world outcomes. That's when the ideology is tested against reality. And very quickly, like generations before, we can see that not everyone deserves or should have access to a megaphone. Not every flavor of speech is fit for the public square and not all of it is healthy for society. Maybe those standards were there for a reason. 

^^Not even touching on disinformation here, which is a giant topic on its own. Maria Ressa won the Nobel Peace Prize a couple of years ago for her work teasing out the effects of disinformation on social media and how platform policies can make it better--or worse. Totally worth checking out her work.

[West]

6 minutes ago, Hodad said:

You're right. Huge, huge implications on the next generation. Huge implications for parenting. The good is amplified, the bad even moreso. We have to talk to kids--even before puberty--about sex and sexualized imagery and language. About bullying. About suicide. Like, that has to just be woven into the fabric of childhood now before kids even hit double digits.

A young girl from a family my family is close with was, essentially, bullied to death on social media a couple of years ago, and it's not a rare story. With that volume of negative input, it's very easy for young people to literally feel like the entire world is against them and would be better off without them. And the harm is done so easily and casually it probably doesn't even feel like a big deal to the bullies. 

And all of it is made many times worse by platforms that deregulate. Twitter/X is a good example. The "free speech" ethos is all well and good until you end up with terrible, tragic real-world outcomes. That's when the ideology is tested against reality. And very quickly, like generations before, we can see that not everyone deserves or should have access to a megaphone. Not every flavor of speech is fit for the public square and not all of it is healthy for society. Maybe those standards were there for a reason. 

^^Not even touching on disinformation here, which is a giant topic on its own. Maria Ressa won the Nobel Peace Prize a couple of years ago for her work teasing out the effects of disinformation on social media and how platform policies can make it better--or worse. Totally worth checking out her work.

The more I read the more I'm concerned about some of this. 

For example, disinformation about where to turn to if you are suicidal can be a major issue and potentially have serious impacts as in the case of your friend. 

While I wasn't a huge fan of the Facebook "disinformation" tags, the algorithms should be able to pick up on key words, provide factual crisis information, etc. 

[Michael Hardner]

On the topic of Freedom of Speech, you need to drill down to what it meant when it was developed and what it means today.

No society exists with unhealthy information and falsehoods everywhere.  No society exists without a common moral sphere.

[West]

28 minutes ago, Michael Hardner said:

On the topic of Freedom of Speech, you need to drill down to what it meant when it was developed and what it means today.

No society exists with unhealthy information and falsehoods everywhere.  No society exists without a common moral sphere.

For me it's the safety to explore new ideas. What we have, and I've certainly been guilty, is an unwillingness to change one's mind once confronted with new facts or ideas. But pursuing the truth and facts with a bit of humility. 

Now we have a free flow of ideas which is a double edged sword.

Edited February 5 by West

[Rebound]

7 hours ago, West said:

Certainly seems like technology has grown at an exasperated rate and we are now just playing catch up. 

There are good people and bad people. 
There are smart people and not so smart people. 
 

Something new comes along, and bad people find a way to use it to harm not so smart people. 

[Perspektiv]

Is social media really at fault, or are our changing ways of connecting with each other?

I feel like a dying breed. 

Whenever the wife and I spend time together, we deliberately get rid of electronics, and spend quality time. We talk. 

I see so many couples at restaurants, nose deep in their phone. Families. 

Helicopter parents keeping kids indoors, plugged in from the moment they can walk, to their devices.

Gone is socializing with kids on their front lawn.

Street proofing your kid was a thing. We used to have to figure that stuff out ourselves.

If I punched a girl and she cried, that guilt I felt told me it was wrong. The consequences for my actions, confirmed it. The social shaming I got from people told me I shouldn't do it again. 

Now people flock to dumpster fires like Twitter and can in a couple clicks ruin someone's life. Facebook. Etc.

Self checkout, because people want to lose connection with people but would lose their minds at the loss of their internet connections. 

I mean I hear of so many kids getting anxiety attacks going to a cash register, to where they need recovery time from it.

Seriously?!

Blaming social media for this is akin to blaming McDonald's for morbid obesity.

There is a certain point where you're shoving the big macs down your throat. 

I just see tons of finger pointing. 

Nowhere will you see people pointing out that being one of the lowest IQ, most self entitled, arrogant generation where accountability makes way for participation trophies. 

You're special just for showing up.

Give me a break.

 

[robosmith]

7 hours ago, Perspektiv said:

Nowhere will you see people pointing out that being one of the lowest IQ, most self entitled, arrogant generation where accountability makes way for participation trophies. 

You're special just for showing up.

Give me a break.

Congrats on becoming your parents. Next you can make an ad for Progressive Insurance. LMAO

What makes you believe the current teen generations' IQ is any lower than normal?

When I was in HS, everytime I walked past the general science classroom, it sounded like a PARTY going on.

AKA, obviously NO teaching and NO learning. 

Edited February 7 by robosmith

[Michael Hardner]

Blame the youth is something that's been going on since... Well. Roman times anyway

[Michael Hardner]

18 minutes ago, Perspektiv said:

1. Is social media really at fault, or are our changing ways of connecting with each other?

...

I see so many couples at restaurants, nose deep in their phone. Families. 

 2. The social shaming I got from people told me I shouldn't do it again. 

 

1. Well we did set up a society where greed is good, lazy is even better.... To the point where it's encouraged... And anybody who tells you that you should do better is accused of virtue signaling.

I agree with you about people on their phones but, mea culpa, I should do much better myself also.

2. I thought your whole thing was you were against people who shame others? As has has been pointed out. I do give you a hard time on here.... So instead of raking you over the coals, I will invite you to explain when you think shaming is okay and when it is not. I will respect your answer as much as possible.

Edited February 6 by Michael Hardner

[Hodad]

4 hours ago, Perspektiv said:

The social shaming I got from people told me I shouldn't do it again. 

 

 

Whaaaaaat?😉

[Perspektiv]

12 hours ago, robosmith said:

What makes you believe the current teen generations' IQ is any lower than normal?

Google is at your fingertips, but nothing seems to be seeping in. 

People can't hold intelligent debates anymore.

I also look at people being voted in. 

I travel a lot. I look at the sheer incompetence of the youth serving me. How absolutely useless and coddled so many seem to be. 

Maybe you're onto something that it isn't an IQ issue, but something clearly is amiss.

Potentially between the ears.

[impartialobserver]

I would say it is not an issue of IQ but rather a bit of a lag. There is so much more stimuli and/or information in the lives of today's kids than any generation before it. Its not even close honestly. They are born and raised entirely in the age of the internet and so have no experiences or memories with the more incremental stuff... live TV (so no fast forwarding through commercials), having to remember phone numbers, terrestrial radio, card catalog at the library, etc. Nothing exists to break up the flow of information.. they can't possibly ingest it all let alone discern what is valuable/valid. Also, it is human nature to take the path of least resistance so why not do self checkout, play video games, live on social media, etc. 

[Michael Hardner]

18 minutes ago, impartialobserver said:

I would say it is not an issue of IQ but rather a bit of a lag.  

You're accepting the premise that something is 'wrong' with tha youts though.

This, to me, is like measuring the zeitgeist.  You need much more perspective, maybe even an impossible level of perspective.

[impartialobserver]

Just now, Michael Hardner said:

You're accepting the premise that something is 'wrong' with tha youts though.

This, to me, is like measuring the zeitgeist.  You need much more perspective, maybe even an impossible level of perspective.

"wrong" ... not quite. They simply face a different reality than the generations before it. You can't blame them for being less inclined to have face to face interaction and being less measured when it comes to debate. 

[Michael Hardner]

5 minutes ago, impartialobserver said:

"wrong" ... not quite. They simply face a different reality than the generations before it. You can't blame them for being less inclined to have face to face interaction and being less measured when it comes to debate. 

Do we know that, even ?  What DO we know ?