Social Media Final Paper Undoubtedly, the presence of the Internet and all of its facets increasingly encompass and control more and more aspects of life in society. In the past few decades, the rise of the Internet has not only been an aid in terms of technology, but has proven to become an integral part of social interactions. Social networking is one of the growing areas of the Internet that has largely created this scenario, with websites such as Facebook and Twitter being utilized by a large portion of the population. However, the use of these networks has drawn criticism, and spurred the debate as to whether this increasing prevalence of technology is ultimately good or bad for the average person. There is evidence that draws on positive and negative aspects of technologic interaction, but one conclusion has yet to be realized over the years. While it has been found to create negative behaviors in users, the prevalence of social media may not be a repugnant phenomenon as previously thought. Social media as a whole has only been present for just under a decade, but along with its branch of social networking, has become an integral aspect of a younger generation of people. Many argue that the insistence of social networking has ultimately broken strong ties with other individuals, but there is evidence on the contrary. With social networks, we can join literal networks interconnected with friends, family and co-workers who can be contacted in an instant. Additionally, “we can upload our best ever pictures and fun videos, share our innermost thoughts with the world, make controversial and bold statements, and comment freely on other peoples’ posts” (“Social Networks”). It is thus evident that that these bonds with others can be kept up to date and strengthened by interaction, but only to certain degrees. As critics have pointed out, physical contact is ultimately withdrawn from this form of interaction and gives users a false sense of friendship with individuals whom they’ve never met in person or know personally. These ties cannot be measured because large in part, they are only present in a technologic sense, where “we are creating alternate realities made of superficial and sometimes false networks of strangers” (“Social Networks”). In my experience with Facebook, this can be very true considering the amount of friends I interact with personally or over chat compared to hundreds I never even remember are there. This is not to say that those people are of lesser value to me; they are just acquaintances and not what I would necessarily consider my “friend”, contrary to the website’s categorization. Personally, I feel that these connections and interactions I have with those who are closer to me as being something of an overall benefit, though various research has found that social media has been altering younger people’s social skills. It has been asserted countless times that the advantages of increased communication and revenue to businesses are very present, but the interpersonal interactions of many people, namely young adults and teenagers, have experienced change. Increasingly, my generation and onward have shown preferences of interacting via the Internet rather than face-to-face, and these necessary communication skills are becoming less stressed towards youth. One study conducted at Elon University found that “face-to-face communication is the ideal form of communicating but is not always possible with the hectic schedules that people have day to day” in general for younger individuals (aged 13-24) (Brodie). It is simply more convenient to get in touch with such a multitude of options in my generation, though I try my best to keep a strong balance. Being a part of networking sites like Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr, I appreciate the sentiment as a bridging for my own social capital. Interacting with people of all sorts that I have not met is fascinating and interesting, and these websites also