Pondering on Social Media

bobinfaith

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Hello brothers and sisters;

My wife and I had a discussion last night about social media. Its basic definition is user generated in the areas of information, articles, posts, comments and discussions. I feel the definition goes beyond informaton into a wide range of video and photo production, on line classes, a new strategy for political campaigns and much, much more.

Then we asked the question. Has social media expanded our freedom of speech causing a positive or negative impact, with the ability to send information of any subject all over the world in real time.

What has been your experience with social media, and how has it impacted you, your family, social and personal life?

I'd like to respond to your thoughts.

God bless you and your families.
 
I see it much like any other tool. If used responsibly, it is good, and the results are positive. However, it seems that anything that CAN be abused or exploited, IS. And so it is this way with social media.
People now days tend to blindly believe much, if not all, of what they see come past their eyes on these accounts... without much, or any research into the truth of the matter.
That fault lies with each of us.... how often do we "share" something just because it causes an emotional response? Should we not at least USE the brain that God has blessed us with?
So to answer your question... whether it's positive or negative depends on us...
When we respond to these items... are we spreading gossip and slander, or truthful fact? Are we helping in some way... or contributing harm to someone?
 
Hello brothers and sisters;

My wife and I had a discussion last night about social media. Its basic definition is user generated in the areas of information, articles, posts, comments and discussions. I feel the definition goes beyond informaton into a wide range of video and photo production, on line classes, a new strategy for political campaigns and much, much more.

Then we asked the question. Has social media expanded our freedom of speech causing a positive or negative impact, with the ability to send information of any subject all over the world in real time.

What has been your experience with social media, and how has it impacted you, your family, social and personal life?

I'd like to respond to your thoughts.

God bless you and your families.
Like with most things, social media has been used for both good and bad.

I've noticed in the younger generations, social media is on par with how adults view their social credit score. It is a part of their life, and without it they feel incomplete. This seems very dangerous to me. I've noticed a group of friends out eating and they are all on their phones... Doing the same thing they would be doing if they are laying down at home.

I can share more on this, but there is a video I watched that touches on this point. Let me know what you think about it:

Social media related issues aren't only a millennial problem; the same issues arise among all ages.

In peace
 
Social media has the potential to be a great means of public discussion, but we squander it by giving heed only to sources that confirm what we already think. The result is polarization and hardening of hearts. Winning arguments rather than fellowship has become the focus.

This leaves us open to manipulation by others.

We should listen with an open mind, consider what we hear, use judgement in what we adopt, and be thoughtful in what we contribute.

Whatever we do believe, it should be strong enough in our hearts to withstand hearing something contrary without either being too easily turned or taking it as a personal attack.
 
I have used one no charge social media platform to send the Weekly Inspiration out to many. My security settings at that platform as as high as they can be and I have had no issues in 12 1/2 years.

Since my ministry generates no revenue of any kind, the no-charge social media platform that I use is a cost saver. I do not accept donations, tithing, freewill gifts, reimbursements or any contributions from anyone at any time, and using the one free social media location, has worked out very well.
 
What has been your experience with social media, and how has it impacted you, your family, social and personal life?

Some of the most contentious long running family arguments have been about what one member or another has posted on social media.

Many siblings have basic misgivings about the electronic gathering of personal information on the internet. One particular family member is convinced that she is being followed everywhere she goes.

So, when someone posts pictures from family get togethers it causes great fights.

Against this dynamic one member researches family genealogy as a hobby. She gathers (and posts) family information and contacts distance relatives she finds online. She feels that anything she finds online, including birth records, death records, marriage records or public land ownership records to be public information that she can use and share as she sees fit.

This has caused, and continues to cause, bad feelings amongst people that do really love each other.

I used to be an avid photographer. While my main interest was not the photography of people, I was often asked to record family reunions. But given the state of family sentiments, I now leave my camera at home.
 
"User generated content" paints with a pretty broad brush. It could fully encompass efforts of professional marketing and PR companies.

The thing I see about it is this:
Wherever you see a concentration of attention, influence, power, and wealth - you will find those who come in to exploit it for their own profit and to increase their own power.

Social Media is no different. And so it's pretty naieve on our part to expect that it should not attract the same sort of attention.

It has been published in the news that this has been going on with the US election campaigns for at least the past 2 election cycles....

It is well known that several prominent campaigns and at least one political party has a large and expensive paid organization set up to influence/ persuade for their side on social media and various forums.

And we know that if political parties are paying to influence on social media - we should expect that everybody else is in the game as well.
 
Hello brothers and sisters;

My wife and I had a discussion last night about social media. Its basic definition is user generated in the areas of information, articles, posts, comments and discussions. I feel the definition goes beyond informaton into a wide range of video and photo production, on line classes, a new strategy for political campaigns and much, much more.

Then we asked the question. Has social media expanded our freedom of speech causing a positive or negative impact, with the ability to send information of any subject all over the world in real time.

What has been your experience with social media, and how has it impacted you, your family, social and personal life?

I'd like to respond to your thoughts.

God bless you and your families.

Excellent question!

I for one have been outspoken on this subject for a very long time almost as long as I have been on "political correctness".

I have seen children, my own grandchildren be changed by cell phones, and video games. They no longer go outside and actually "play" but instead they are happy to sit in a corner with their face glued to a video or telephone screen.

In church services we have to ask every Sunday to please turn off your cell phones/ There is nothing worse than a cell phine ringing in the middle of a sermon. It is almost like the devil saying...….ooops, watch how I can disrupt a worship service!!!!!!

My wife and I have become the "bad guys" to our grandchildren as we have made our home " a NO fly zone " to those appliances. They know that when they come to our house it is outside to run and play and get dirty.
 
Some of the most contentious long running family arguments have been about what one member or another has posted on social media.

Many siblings have basic misgivings about the electronic gathering of personal information on the internet. One particular family member is convinced that she is being followed everywhere she goes.

So, when someone posts pictures from family get togethers it causes great fights.

Against this dynamic one member researches family genealogy as a hobby. She gathers (and posts) family information and contacts distance relatives she finds online. She feels that anything she finds online, including birth records, death records, marriage records or public land ownership records to be public information that she can use and share as she sees fit.

This has caused, and continues to cause, bad feelings amongst people that do really love each other.

I used to be an avid photographer. While my main interest was not the photography of people, I was often asked to record family reunions. But given the state of family sentiments, I now leave my camera at home.

Agreed!

What ever happened to "What happens in the family stays in the family" and not go and tell the world that my dog ate our neighbors daisies.
Who really cares???
 
Like with most things, social media has been used for both good and bad.

I've noticed in the younger generations, social media is on par with how adults view their social credit score. It is a part of their life, and without it they feel incomplete. This seems very dangerous to me. I've noticed a group of friends out eating and they are all on their phones... Doing the same thing they would be doing if they are laying down at home.

I can share more on this, but there is a video I watched that touches on this point. Let me know what you think about it:

Social media related issues aren't only a millennial problem; the same issues arise among all ages.

In peace

Agreed. The "good" is that it has allowed the church to spread the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ ALL over the world in a way that it has never been done before!

Look just as this web site. We can openly discuss and teach Christ to people on the other side of the world whose countries will not allow Bibles to enter their country.

Just like the cross of Christ, God has the ability to take what looks and is bad, and change it into something really good!
 
Just to add ....

From what I have seen, it seems that one area where "social media" really shines and serves a good purpose, is whenever there is some crisis situation, (emergencies, natural disasters, etc)....
It's during such times that it can actually help save lives. People do tend to pull together and try to help each other during times of need.
 
Social media pretty much has made us anti-social! Instead of visiting people and talking with them, we can just send a message in WhatsApp. While convenient, it has removed "emotions" part out. And in social media, people are who they want to be and not who they are. And it has also become a platfor for propaganda. Not just politicians. All sort of propagandas fly through social media and has a large impact. It does have lot of positives though. It has become the new normal and it is not going away.
 
Just to add ....

From what I have seen, it seems that one area where "social media" really shines and serves a good purpose, is whenever there is some crisis situation, (emergencies, natural disasters, etc)....
It's during such times that it can actually help save lives. People do tend to pull together and try to help each other during times of need.

Agreed!

It is just like a lot of other things we use and "missuse" which cause the problem...…..IMO.
 
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Another thing we need to keep in mind is our relationship to these social media companies.

1. They are for profit companies.
2. They make money by selling something to customers.
3. Who are their customers
4. What do they sell their customers?
5. We don't pay anything - so we aren't customers.
6. We don't sell them anything - so we aren't vendors to them.

Their actual customers - the people who pay them money - are advertisers, marketing and PR firms, companies who do sell stuff, and people buying user data.

What does that make us?

Right - that makes us their PRODUCT.

They are selling us.

The social media platform is the vehicle that they use to sell us to their customers.

This is the business model.
 
Social media pretty much has made us anti-social! Instead of visiting people and talking with them, we can just send a message ...

in thinking about this, I would say that social media hasn't made us more anti-social it has provided a platform that illustrates how anti-social we are.

Now, instead of feeling like no one cares enough to call me on my birthday, I get social media reminders of all the people who can't be bothered to call me or visit me on my birthday (as an example).

To put this a different way; I like the idea of recycling, but not enough to take glass, plastic, etc to the recycling center. Now that we have curbside recycle pickup I participate. I am no more or less eco-conscious, I was just given a very user friendly way to do my very least to participate.

I would say we are the same people we were before modern social media, no better, no worse; but now we can collect people like baseball cards? Can I friend you, I want a complete set?
 
I am reminded of what one of my Christian Mentors told a group of teenagers in our Church. The group of teens were in an argument about whether or not it was ok to go to a club to go dancing. I was not part of this group so I don't know what all the opinions were, but to their credit, they ended up at the pastor's house to ask him. His counsel to them was the following:

If you can take me with you and introduce me to people at that club, to the glory of God; then it is perfectly ok.

None of the teens went to the club that night.

This is what we should be thinking about in every action we take, online, offline, in person, or over the wire; am I glorifying God?

I have to say, I am very appreciative of this site, others like it, and many God fearing men and women in my life who help me stay focused on His Glory.
 
Social media has the potential to be a great means of public discussion, but we squander it by giving heed only to sources that confirm what we already think. The result is polarization and hardening of hearts. Winning arguments rather than fellowship has become the focus.

This leaves us open to manipulation by others.

We should listen with an open mind, consider what we hear, use judgement in what we adopt, and be thoughtful in what we contribute.

Whatever we do believe, it should be strong enough in our hearts to withstand hearing something contrary without either being too easily turned or taking it as a personal attack.

We have had "Social Media" for a very long time.

Some of us remember when it was called a "Party Line" on the telephone.
 
in thinking about this, I would say that social media hasn't made us more anti-social it has provided a platform that illustrates how anti-social we are.

Now, instead of feeling like no one cares enough to call me on my birthday, I get social media reminders of all the people who can't be bothered to call me or visit me on my birthday (as an example).

To put this a different way; I like the idea of recycling, but not enough to take glass, plastic, etc to the recycling center. Now that we have curbside recycle pickup I participate. I am no more or less eco-conscious, I was just given a very user friendly way to do my very least to participate.

I would say we are the same people we were before modern social media, no better, no worse; but now we can collect people like baseball cards? Can I friend you, I want a complete set?
May be anti-social was too strong. It has probably made us less social. I think this goes with any technology or innovation. These things are supposed to make our lives easy. But doing them the difficult way had its own advantages. For example, transportation. Without that everyone was just walking. Now we just hop in a car. It is very convenient and easy. But the physical part had its advantage. We go everywhere in car and run in treadmill to get that exercise!
Same goes with social media. It is supposed to make communication between people easier. But it actually makes us less social. And there is a bigger agenda with these social media things. They are more of propaganda tools which comes with certain benefits. That's the way I look at it
 
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