Drama Ruins Social Networking

By Paola, 16, junior

Facebook and Twitter have become the center of our social lives. We connect with friends and share memories easier than ever through these websites. Although they’re fun to use and can sometimes have benefits, such as being able to contact someone who doesn’t have a phone, the websites can also be pretty damaging, emotionally and sometimes physically.

I’ve noticed how messed up social media has become over the last three years. For starters, Facebook is now a “Like and share!” contest or for girls seeking attention from guys who will never care about them.

Some girls will go to great lengths to get attention. A girl at my high school claimed she was pregnant, posting fake pictures of the baby bump. She sought pity through sad statuses and constant updates. She got busted when a friend told her parents what was going on.

On Twitter, the drama gets so bad that it often turns into a fight in real life, mostly at school. This happens on Facebook, too, but I’ve noticed that it happens more over Twitter.

There have been numerous cases of kids attempting suicide or actually committing suicide because of things said online. Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and other chat sites are the main reason.

People always said, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” But words do hurt, a lot. Every single day someone is affected by another person’s words. It’s called cyber bullying, which is becoming more widespread.

Because of all the drama that goes on when logged into social networking sites, teenagers are becoming addicted and distracted even at school. They’re obsessed about someone else’s life or their social life and losing sight of what is really important – school, ACTUAL friends, and getting out and interacting with something other than an iOS device or a computer.

“Courage is fire, and bullying is smoke.” – Charles Disraeli