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Caitlin Vaughan
DerOhanessian
ENG115 M/W 11-12:15
November 2014
The Turn of the Century and the People
Social media has arguably become an integral part of everyday lives in todays society.
No longer is it about reading the newspaper, listening to the radio, or sending and receiving
letters from friends and family. More and more, we have witnessed the technological boom that
has given us many new resources. Television, cell phones, computers, laptops, and tablets all
provide instant gratification and the latest, most relevant information for every user. As the
popularity of smart phones increases, so does the demand for more social media sources. Today
we have Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Vine, Snapchat, and so many more sites and
apps that connect us to the real world. All of these outlets provide the billions of people on this
earth with information and causes and opinions. Rhetoric is dispersed through the air and brings
people together, whether they are agreeing on a certain topic or bitterly arguing over what is
right and what is wrong. Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter are becoming a tool that
most people utilize in order to improve social interactions, and this makes the ultimate
amelioration of society possible.
What are the benefits of social media? Almost every single person that has an account on
any one of the various sites that grant accessibility to nearly the whole world will say that social
media connects us to people who we could never have met otherwise. There are far more
benefits than those though. Social media is an outlet for those who wish to voice their opinion
regarding issues that concern communities, states, other countries or continents, and especially

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politicians and political movements. More and more, people become involved in politics, which
is what democracy is supposed to be about. America is no longer the democratic country where
the people do not get involved in the decisions that impact their lives, and that is mostly thanks
to the rise in social media usage. Without the impact of social media, less people would feel
compelled to get involved and promote change that benefits everyone. The accessibility of so
many resources at the tip of the finger is much more desirable than having to go out and
participate in events that would concern political issues. It has become so easy to connect with
politicians through social media that it is mind boggling. You can follow Barack Obama on
Twitter for goodness sakes! And he actually sends out important tweets that more than 49.8
million people can read on their cell phones and laptop screens. Not only can someone connect
to powerful politicians in The White House, but local California politicians are also highly
accessible on social media as well, such as state Governor Jerry Brown who has about one
million followers on Twitter. Who says social media is only for the socialites and movie stars?
Incredible good can be done just by being able to stay up to date on the news and laws that affect
people on a local level. So many benefits exist because of social media that it is difficult to argue
that society is only going downhill.
There are many people who would gladly promote the benefits of social media.
According to Karen Poreh, Today, there are over one billion active users on Facebook. Tweets
per day surged from 300,000 in 2008 to 200 million by 2011The surge of Internet, social
media, and blog use has had major implications on the spread of information and new forms of
communication (1). Not only does social media provide such platforms for improvements, but
These technologies have also affected the political landscapeWe have witnessed how Twitter
and Facebook can be used to mobilize the public against oppressive regimes and express

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sentiments against governments (Poreh 2). Poreh raises many great points in her article and
solidifies the argument that social media will ultimately improve the nature of society by
providing the resources that she mentions. Douglas W. Evans is vice president for public health
and environment at RTI International and argues the point that Increasingly savvy social
marketers have begun to make extensive use of the same techniques and strategies used by
commercial marketers to promote healthful behaviors and to counter some of the negative effects
of conventional media marketing to children and adolescents (1). In his abstract, Evans points
out that social marketing campaigns have been effective in helping to prevent and control
tobacco use, increase physical activity, improve nutrition, and promote condom use, as well as
other positive health behaviors (1). These points are indicative of the positive effects that social
media can and will have on Americas youth as they are exposed to so many marketing
campaigns online. The brands marketed throughout social media sources become extremely
important because Marketers use brands to build relationships that enhance the value of
products and services for consumers Very much like reputations, brands precede the
individual or organization and shape how the world responds (Evans 3). In this statement, it is
clear to see how vital brands are for bringing people together to form a community that may
impact others on a societal level. Evans brings up many more examples regarding the positive
impact social media can have on society by mentioning that Social marketing has also been
used to promote behaviors such as better parent-child communication and improved family
health (5). With all of these effects of social media, it is hardly possible for the bad to outweigh
the good in the long run.
The growth of the necessity for an internet connection to be able to communicate online
or share thoughts, photos, videos, and more shows that future generations will eventually

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struggle to actually communicate outside the comfort of their home or desk. However, social
media does offer every user the ability to learn something new every single day. Whenever I log
onto Facebook or Twitter, I find advertisements and videos that peak my interest and allows me
to learn about a new and interesting cause that I would be willing to support. The visual rhetoric
of these social media sites appeals to my tastes and values by advertising or promoting posts that
the site prepares for my satisfaction. Social media sites like these use ethos by telling me that
someone I follow has either liked or favorited a post, therefore making me more likely to
also view that same post. For the most part, these posts spread humanitarian thought and could,
in the long run, convince future generations to be more accepting than the society that we are
living in at this point in time. I like to think that this will happen due to a positive form of peer
pressure and possibly an evolution of perception. This evolution is likely to occur because of the
access that so many young people have to social media that supports progressive social change.
There are so many things wrong with society. People kill others for reasons too petty or
horrible to mention. Some steal or find other ways to provoke and harass the populace of a
country that was built on the idea that everyone needs to work for what they have. Others
continue to discriminate against minorities that already have less rights than they should have. Of
course there will be the argument that the nature of society cannot be so great because
cyberbullying and online terrorism exist. This a good argument to address since bad people will
always be around to push the good ones down. There is almost no way to stop bad people from
going online and utilizing social media to fulfill an agenda that will benefit themselves and quite
possibly put the well-being of others in harms way. The occurrence of death threats and
comments that put others down hurt people that have no way of facing their attacker. These are
the risks that will always be associated with usage of a tool that can hardly be monitored with

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privacy settings. If the people that believe there will be no end to the negativity that exists in
society continue to believe this fact, then there definitely will not be a change for the better in
the future. The argument can only be validated by those who wish to argue that the nature of
society is ultimately evil. Those humans need to see that their own argument perpetuates their
belief that negativity will never disappear because their thought in itself is so negative.
One of the greatest issues that I personally take to heart is the discrimination against the
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) community in America. The Human
Rights Campaign is an organization that I not only support through donations, but through my
like on Facebook and my following on Twitter. It is my belief that the nature of society is
ultimately good when there are so many ways to access the information needed to create great
social change. Their website provides even more resources for supporters and humans who find
themselves in need of a loving, accepting community to find out what they can do to improve the
nature of society. These online resources show just how much social media can unite people
where support is needed.
The demand for social media sites grows daily. At this point in time, there are many
sources that connect us to the universe of information on the web, including social media sites
such as Facebook and Twitter. The existing social media sites seem to be about as much as
anyone would need to be entertained and informed for the rest of their lives. It might be a bit
much for society to be aware of if there were any more sites created in the future. But as society
moves forward, the older social media sites tend to decline and lose users or followers, making
room for improvements and providing newer sources for information and greater possibilities for
changes. As technology and social media progress, so will the people who are made aware of
issues in which they could become involved in the future.