Opinion: More social interactions; less of social media

Social media is just a controversial topic when it comes to interactions with other human beings. Some people think that you’re not losing communication with your friends and family. Others say that you’re losing your face-to-face communication because they’re always on their phones, tablets, etc.

When it comes to social media, I think of it as not losing touch with your friends and close relatives, but you do lose some of that in-person interaction. I use social media — Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, etc — everyday, but I always try to stay in touch with my family and friends face-to-face. I grew into the beginning of new technology, so I wouldn’t know what it’s like to want something new and expensive at a young age. But for the younger audience, it’s encouraging them to want something new really bad. 

“3.48 billion people now use social media. That’s an increase of 9% from last year. Put another way: 45% of the total world population are using social networks,” said Hootsuite.com. 

Everyday, millions of people join social media to be more interactive online with others. But slowly, it decreases physical interactions with human beings. I live in a generation where 12 year olds already have the latest models of iPhones, Samsung, etc. 

The usage of technology and social media has increased so much that the kids from this generation don’t even go outside and hang out with their friends on their bikes anymore. I feel like kids don’t know what the consequences are when talking with someone online and not knowing who they are. There could be dangerous strangers that are coming in contact with these kids or kids can put themselves in danger with what they post online. Depending on what you post, people can make false accusations about you. 

From what I have seen, most kids do their communication online and there should be a limit to that. Junior, Andres Correa Martinez stated, “It’s bad that people rely on social media nowadays to make a conversation instead of building social skills and talking to somebody face to face.” 

The future will keep coming and the technology is only going to be getting better and attracting more people.

As the future goes on, technology and social media will find a way to limit face to face interactions.

 “I think it’s extremely important for people to communicate face to face, but I also think that based on the circumstances society has put us in, social media is basically the way we communicate ‘face to face’,” stated Maria Longoria, a sophomore.

For the most part, parents should encourage their kids to play outside with their friends or siblings. Being with your brothers or sisters builds your relationship to be better and stronger. Now, they just stay in their rooms on their phones looking through social media to find something “entertaining.” 

Communicating with others is a skill that, in my opinion, kids should learn to be good at. 

“Perhaps one of the biggest differences in why millennials struggle with face-to-face communications is because they’ve always had the ability to edit a message. Even for the most mundane of conversations, younger generations have always had the time to think something over. This not only removes a sense of vulnerability, but the raw emotion that could come with it,” stated Forbes.com. With a press of a button, people can say whatever they want by taking their time. 

Of course, social media will always be the fastest way to communicate with friends and family. That’s how we’re going to get things done. But that’s just going to limit our face to face interactions. Parents should start encouraging their kids to play with others more instead of staying in bed and looking through the social media feed on Facebook or Instagram. Friends should hang out more in person rather than talking on the phone. Being together face to face will build up your connection with your favorite people.