Why do you use social media? Don’t frown; think about the question. Think deeply, sincerely. Does social media help you connect with loved ones, or rather help you stalk distant acquaintances and compare your life with theirs? Does it help you do business, or help you attract hundreds or thousands of mysterious “followers” who care more about their dirty socks than they do about your wellbeing? Does it help you be productive, or help you waste golden time through endless and compulsive and addictive scrolling?
Don’t roll your eyes; think about this. Think carefully, honestly.
Have you read Jonathan Haidt’s book The Anxious Generation, or Jaron Lanier’s book Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, or Adam Alter’s book Irresistible? If so, then why on this speckled earth still use social media? And if you haven’t read any of those books, then do you consider yourself well informed, or ignorant, about the emotional, spiritual, and physical health dangers tossed at us by social media?
Let’s try another angle. Consider an insect flying through the peaceful night air. The insect sees a purple light and thinks, “Uh, there is the sun; that way is up.” So the light deceives the innocent creature by appealing to its natural instincts, and the clueless creature turns its back towards the “sun” and drifts closer and closer to it until … ZAP! The electrified wire surrounding the light has turned the insect into a lifeless pile of burnt, smelly, smouldering ash.
Social media is such a light that appeals to our natural desires for attention and gossip and friendship and popularity, then it zaps us and fries part of our mental wellbeing, and fries part of the health of society, and it does this over and over and over, all the while laughing at the foolish humans that sincerely believe they are in control.
So, this question will haunt you until you can provide a well-argued and strong justification in reply: Why do you use social media?