10 | opinion / the standard / may 2021
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Social media's influence, especially on the spread and knowledge of news, should be reexamined
ocial media has expanded its reach over time and has now become a prominent factor within everyone’s lives. Whether it be keeping in touch with friends, following the latest trends or discovering a new recipe, social media has a category for everything. However, most distinguishably is its influence on the spread and knowledge of information. People are more informed than ever due to easy access to information and constant bombardment of it, however the quality of what is presented is questionable. Take Snapchat for example. Most stories are tabloids of people who hardly anyone knows nor cares much about, but then some stories bring awareness or contain factual information
about things in the world. Junior Sydney Gilman said there are two major categories: one important and another not so much. “There's categories of Youtuber or like social media drama that doesn't really matter and it's going to go away in a month,” Gilman said. “And then there's the categories of national news that's really important and people should know.” Many people understand that the influencer drama is not important and they say they don’t care, but they still are curious about what's happening. Gilman said the influencer news is a nuisance at most. “Most of [the news online] is [important] but then some of the stuff is
just kind of like 'why am I reading this, why am I taking time out of my day?'” Gilman said. At the same time, these types of attention grabbing headlines rake up views and earn the title of trending alongside more important and influential information. AP U.S. history and world geography teacher Mike Hardin said he strongly believes that some things shouldn’t be a part of the news and don't deserve as much attention as they receive. “No one should care what Kim Kardashian had for lunch,” Hardin said. “No one should even care any more about her being a person than you or I … It's more newsworthy because it's trendy and she gets people's attention.”
