Behind a Screen
The online world; a blessing or a curse?
Behind a screen...
Everything is easier from behind a screen, it's easier to hide, to ignore, to hurl abuse at people, virtual strangers. It's easier to speak out, because at the end of it? It's all from behind a screen. No one knows you, no one cares to know you. Why go out into the world and meet people when you can meet people over the internet, right? You don't even have to leave the comfort of your home. The world has become far too digital, I'm not even two decades old, but the younger generations make me feel older. I remember going out with my friends and playing hopscotch, or making mud pies, or climbing trees, doing kid stuff, you know? All the children of today know are computer screens and iPhones. The only thing they worry about is how many likes and followers they have on Instagram, or who's prettier. They don't understand the word socialise, they text back and forth without even really knowing who they're speaking to. After all, there's more to a person than just a face and name, right? The world is a lot more dangerous than people think, however I'm starting to wonder, maybe the digital world is far more dangerous, physically and mentally, especially to children. I have a 13-year-old niece, and to be honest I've never been more disappointed in technology. Because of technology she has been through far too much. Bullying is bad and hurtful. When I was younger I was bullied greatly, but I found comfort in my home, where the walls seemed like an impenetrable fortress in which no one could hurt me. My niece doesn't have that, she comes home to a place that is supposed to be her safe haven, and is still verbally abused by people over the internet and social media. Because just as it's perhaps safer behind a screen, it's also far more dangerous...
Social media is not always a bad thing despite my previous comment though. However sometimes it becomes far too toxic. Children today are developing social anxiety and depression, have body image issues, because of social media and what they see they perceive to be true—they are too easily influenced. Social media CAN be fun, and it can be an amazing platform when used in the right way. It can help people connect with one another. It can expand people's horizons, and help people achieve their dreams. It can be a place of therapy, and help people air their thoughts, help them be heard. But it can also be a poison. It can ruin people's state of mind. It can tear at children's fragile self-esteem. It can trample on people's hopes and dreams, because they forget, that when they see a pretty photo or a 20-minute video of someone's 'perfect' life. They forget that it is JUST a photo, or that it is JUST a video—a little snippet of that person's life. They forget that they don't really know what is happening behind the screen...
so that leaves me with one question; a question which is answered differently depending on the person who answers it...
Is social media a blessing or a curse?
About the Creator
shannon scott
I'm somewhat ordinary if not a little eccentric 19-year-old with an imagination and a hell of a life.
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