The social media has played a very important role in the world today. It has made communication easier and made the learning process easier. The technology that comes with social media has helped many students to exchange of ideas. People can learn and create new things in new ways; they can also communicate with people who are new to them. Although Information is quickly transferred from one person to the other through the social media, nowadays people are spending many hours on such sites like face book, twitter and even 2go.
The organisations that have harnessed this technology, has seen many implications on the Social media. It has played the role of training. For example, the doctors and the paramilitary are trained using various methods. This has created the opportunities for learning since there is some collaboration associated. People are able to share the knowledge. In most of the companies, productivity is realised. For example, most of the companies now use face book for advertisement. Facebook is cost effective and attracts large numbers of potential customers.
Social media goes hand in hand with innovations. Innovation is a transformation in the thought process for doing something or “novel stuff” that is made practical. It may point to augmentable evolving or drastic and rebellious transformation in reflecting, products, processes, or organizations. Literatures on innovation distinctively differentiate between invention, an idea made visible, and innovation, ideas made relevant successfully in real life.
There are also the benefits that come with the social media. Social media like the use of face book and twitter help to maintain relationships. Facebook is growing very fast as a social network all over the world and it will affect the culture of many people negatively. Facebook is believed to be used mostly by young people (youth) to discuss their own issues; hence degrading their culture and adopting other cultures through addiction and influence by others. Facebook has a provision, where one can generally update his or her relationship status. Through this, people can tell your stand in relationships, whether you are single or are you married, engaged, or divorced. Mostly the members in the groups update others on the activities that are happening. The members can also share their whereabouts. Through this, the social media plays the role of reconnecting friend. One can be able to reconnect with people, who have been missing in their lives for long. The social media also serves as a sharing site. One can be able to share his or her photos, sending some of the private messages and posting public testimonials.
Social media is also a channel, through which most of the political ideas are passed. Social networks have promoted the spread of political ideas, by the fact that most of the politicians own profiles. Politicians can have twitter accounts where they tweet their take on political issues. Through this, they are able to express their general views regarding a countries’ political stand. Most of the politicians have used these sites to influence masses. This is because they are able to present their agendas in a clear way to the public. The social media has also been a key tool today in the collection and the management of news. Many of the new organisations now interact on the social media. This helps to create a one on one direct link, with the audience. They are also able to get first hand information regarding several events.
Businesses have not been left behind in the utilization of social media. Social media has specifically been of great importance in marketing. It has opened up communication between the marketer, customer and the consumer at hand. There is also the fact that the products are personalised. The message is spread in a relaxed and a more conversational way.The social media can pose a negative role like what happened in London. The social media reportedly instigated the London riots.
Privacy within the social networks is very minimal; it is not expected and at times it may not even be defined (Dwyer 54). Most of the interactions that are carried out within the social networks leave no trace. This may be considered as a passive enabler of the social privacy (Lessig 98). Social media requires that one creates a profile; although one may establish privacy to his own profile, people can still access his friends’ accounts. Sometimes this can be embarrassing since most of the time the friends that we may have on these social media may be contrary to what we perceive as right.
Social media has had several impacts on the society. The impression that the social media creates has several consequences on the society as a whole. Social media always talk about the celebrities, whether a story is true or false. False stories are often told to the public to get ratings. This is seen with the sexual predators who are preying on children. Most of the sexual predators use the social media as a means to lure young and innocent people into sexual immorality.
The social media has to some extent brought down some of the social structures that were present in our society. Through the spread of ideas, people have adopted some beliefs. Many people come up with groups, state their philosophies and expect to have a following. The Facebook for instance, is believed to be used mostly for love and sexual affairs; hence, it has been associated with people who are idle, prostitutes and immoral people. There is lack of creativity and innovation for those using Facebook because their main agenda is to socialize only. This therefore means that, there will be no development and advancement in technology.