Ethical use is a set of good moral values and principles in the context of social media. Social media has a huge impact on contemporary society. Social media shapes trends, social norms, and values in society - these are all part of contemporary society. Ethical use of social media is a significant topic to talk about because social media is growing (with the internet & technology) rapidly throughout the world. Social media can change the world for the better or for the worse.
Social media platforms have various settings to protect user data. Users can still post too much about themselves and social media cannot stop them from that. After a person shows something social media shows it to all the world but keeps whatever the user wants to keep to themselves (for example face, location, and where the user is can all be hidden if the user wants that). There are privacy concerns in which social media uses data mining, surveillance, and misuse of your information. Good ways to make sure that if a social media user does this (or a hacker) then you should always have a back up plan such as deleting that account and making a new one that does not have any information about your privacy. Some ethical dilemmas in social media are breaches in private information and misrepresentation in products. Cyberbullying, addiction, and social comparison are all negative effects that social media can have on a person's mental health. Cyberbullying can make a person feel hurt. Addiction is hard to break and causes work issues, family issues, and various health problems. Social media can both positively and negatively affect a person's well being. Social media can positively affect a person through sharing, seeing other people's perspectives, and fast travel of information of what is going on in the world. Meanwhile social media can negatively affect a person because it could make a person have low self esteem, depressed, or have other issues. The ethical responsibility in handling these social media issues is to censor out harmful or inappropriate comments that hurt or harm others in any way whatsoever. Spread of information is very important and you cannot always trust social media. Some content on social media is true but never rely only on one source for information and news, especially when anyone can post anything. Relying on social media for information leaves you vulnerable to misinformation. Speaking of misinformation, (which social media has a lot of) the spread of “fake news” is a key source that social media helps spread, this can mislead people. To stop misinformation for social media and users, social media should delete (or not allow at all) any harmful hashtags or comments. Users can distinguish between fake and real news by always backing up claims with evidence when looking at content in social media. Relationships are important and social media can affect them both positively or negatively. While social media can help others communicate to loved ones from far away and have resources or support, it can harm relationships with little face-to-face communication and can make people insecure or isolated. Finally, ethical considerations in online interactions is a huge positive in social media. Through social media people connect, share ideas, show respect to one another, and have empathy for those who are hurting.
I do not use social media yet but in the future I shall apply ethical principles such as kindness, friendliness, and empathy to others on social platforms. Steps that I will take to make sure I am being responsible and respectful to others on social media are: I will always think twice before posting anything to make sure it is positive, I will form good habits and not get into anything that might reveal personal information, and I will have integrity while on social media. To conclude, social media can be used for the better or the worse. There's still many flaws in social media but social media is a type of community where people learn, share, and experience others' stories. To end, use social media in a positive way and share experiences in a healthy manner through the community - always be respectful and have understanding.
