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Social Media News


 

One aspect that my blog focuses on is political polarization and distrust in our government. One reason that political polarization and distrust have become so prominent, especially in younger generations, is the sources of which individuals view their news. Social media platforms being used as means to viewing news is increasing and has steadily increased since popularity of social media has boomed. Consuming news through social media (as a main source of news) can be problematic for many reasons. Unfortunately, much of the news that is circulated through social media is oftentimes extremely biased and is not reliable or factual in many instances. This contributes to spreading of misinformation to individuals who view social media as their main sources of news. According to a study done by Pew Research, many social media companies have been criticized regularly for not putting more effort into stopping spread of misinformation on their sites in a time where so many look to social media for news, “about a third of U.S. adults (31%) say they get news regularly on Facebook, while about one-in-five Americans (22%) say they regularly get news on YouTube. Twitter and Instagram are regular news sources for 13% and 11% of Americans, respectively.” The biases and emotional languages used in social media news to evoke emotions in its audience can lead to individuals becoming emotional and even overwhelmed depending on the event being reported on. And in relation to political events, these emotions can cause individuals to avoid politics all together, leading to political polarization. This aspect is incredibly important when viewing the relationship between politics and media and how media influences avoidance of politics in many. I have attached the article to the Pew Research Study that goes into further detail of the age groups, demographics, and frequency of individuals using social media for news.

https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2021/09/20/news-consumption-across-social-media-in-2021/

Comments

  1. McKinnley PhillipsFebruary 23, 2022 at 3:09 AM

    I agree with you - social media has a large effect on political polarization and distrust in the media. Oftentimes, so many false articles and information spread so fast because of social media. It takes little to no time to post, retweet, like, or share what is on social media. It seems that people do not do further research before sharing news articles. It is understandable how the increase in technology and social media has affected the way people view the news. While social media is a faster way to research or find out information than flipping through a newspaper or book, social media is not always accurate. I do not think I have seen a newspaper in years. Great post!

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About Me.....

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Melissa N
Hello everyone, my name is Melissa Clopein. I am a senior at Kennesaw State University, my major is Political Science with a minor in International Relations. In my free time I enjoy cooking, hiking, traveling, and learning as much as I can about different countries and their cultures. Ever since I was old enough to truly understand politics, I have been interested in international relations and politics. In addition, I have also been extremely interested in how media influences politics and the relationship between the two, which is a major reason I am taking this class. I intend to use this blog to focus on some important topics relating specifically to mass media and politics. I think an important topic to address is the common occurrence of biases in media, extremism from the left and the right, and how both sides contribute to political polarity in U.S citizens.