Blog Social Networking

To think about a time when social networking was not popular and part of our every day lives is a difficult task. This is mostly because it has becomes such a common aspect of our day-to-day that we can't imagine a time without it. Social networking involves the use of a website, or multiple websites, that allow people to interact with others online. Just like any other popular trend, there are reasons behind the popularity of social networking. The reasons happen to be the different uses of social networking.

On a personal level, owning a social media platform can mean access to different hobbies, information about health, or simply using it to socialize with others, whom the user may or may not know in real life. On a corporate level, it could be used to find out information about another business, or someone from that business. For instance, LinkedIn is a very popular website that is used by people to find jobs and write up one's credentials on their profile. As can be seen in the aforementioned text, there is truly no limit to social networking, as the uses for it widely vary. 

Social networking also has many benefits to society. To continue talking on the corporate level, according to an article in the National Public Radio, social networking has helped companies find people with the right qualifications. Recruiting became so much easier with the use of social networking that a representative of a company could simply send a message to the candidate and call them in for interviews after only looking at their profile (click here to read the full article). Furthermore, social networking can be useful in the political arena as well. Through platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, President Barack Obama was able to give his supporters the voice that they otherwise would not have found so easily. With their voice, he was able to maintain his support even after winning the presidency. Full article can be found at How Obama Tapped Into Social Network's Power. 

Besides having positive uses, social networking can also have a dark side, as do most things that are purely the making of people. The dark side can be the result of something as simple as bad advice. Bad advice about someone's physical or psychological health can lead to devastating results. Furthermore, one of the biggest issues people face when using social media is the issue of privacy. The nature of most social networking platforms is sharing information, be it about oneself or something else, and this naturally leads to the question of who is reading and how they are using the information. According to The Atlantic, even the sister of Mark Zuckerberg, who is the founder of Facebook, has had difficulties with keeping her posts private. This goes to show how privacy settings are difficult to understand and the average person is not protected because they simply don't understand how it works. This can contribute to the dark side, as the loss of privacy can be detrimental. Click here for full article on Zuckerberg's sister.

Social media is a phenomenon that is thought of as a huge part of our today. One can't but wonder what it will be like in ten, or twenty years. I personally think that it will continue evolving, as it is doing every day, and it will result in an even bigger network, offering people the chance to interact and collaborate with people that they would have never had the chance to otherwise. For instance, we may get to a point where the entire medical system is based on social networking, specifically based on patients interacting with their doctors and talking about symptoms online (of course not in the case of emergencies).
It's hard to say what the future holds, but I am very excited to find out!

Thanks for reading and see you soon!

Nanar