Social Media: Time to sign off ?!

TRUE. Indeed, social media is changing the world. And it’s also undoubtedly creating massive discontent – worldwide – and intensely disrupting democracies, spreading discontent.

In the few recent months, and especially in this September, multiple Social Media platforms are believed to have been enormously instrumental destabilizing governments in several countries: Nepal, France, Malaysia, South Korea, Cambodia, Thailand, and more. The affected countries include not only highly developed, but many developing ones too.

Just a few days ago, sudden momentous occurrences in India’s neighbouring former Hindu Himalayan kingdom, Nepal’s capital Katmandu, fully and amply demonstrated what and how social media can destroy a chaotic albeit functioning government. The one single cause of all these unprecedented, catastrophic destructions is said to be Nepal’s 26 social media prolific platforms: Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, etc.

Nepal, the Himalayan nation of some thirty million people, had been experiencing wide protests led largely by Gen Z protestors demanding the dissolution of parliament and creating a non-partisan governmental administration. But government did not budge, leading to intensification of protests, actively aided and abetted by nearly 26 social media platforms. Banning social media platforms ended in severe violent protests; prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli was ousted. With parliament building, supreme complex, Singh Darbar, Nepal’s 173-year government office complex, all in flames, several deaths and extensive damage was done. The world saw ‘deeply fiendish, culpable’ impact of social media Tobias Rose-Stockwell presented in Outrage Machine. He lists stories events and occurrences with their headlines to illustrate how social media operates through us, human beings, by employing algorithms, social metrics, and just emotions and images created by these events and happenings. He reveals how social media platforms have captured us and have ignited a society-wide ‘crisis of trust.’ Outrage Machine explores how every new media tech. disrupts our ability to make sense of the world, from print media to radio, TV, internet and smartphones and create confusion, violence and emerging anarchy. It prepares us to face nihilism and unbridled mob rule.

This entire book written in ‘racy’ language immediately absorbs the reader. As the author says a social media post’s ‘content flirts with extreme, is likely to receive more public engagement… cluttering with angry, terrible content that walk-up trough to the edge of unacceptable, the outrageous, and the extreme all without external help.’ Exactly like what happened in Nepal. Thanks to social media-birthed disaster repairing which ‘will take at least twenty years’, the ousted Nepalese leaders were heard saying online. Social media’s this leg-up was what the author calls ‘Outrage about the Outrage,’ ‘unthinkable or radical post is a challenge to a fight.’ The author draws references from history, politics, sciences; amazingly compels reading and stop till the chapter ends. It’s truly an important book that anyone interested human psychology would cherish to own.

Finally, while the book is surely an excellent read…perhaps more than once. However, one feels its script needed ‘tight’ editing that could have cut its size and helped reduce price.

Paul Signoreli’s book, ‘Change the World Using Social Media’, is a textbook delineating the power of social media and learning how to bring about change in the world. According to the author, this book ‘is designed to help to think, rethink, how social media platforms can improve ability to engage, inspire, and collaborate with current and prospective supporters to produce positive change within the onsite and online communities you serve.’ But he knows the specific tools, e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.

While the author dilates liberally on what all these social media platforms can execute, all the positive things, he rarely spares a word of caution about what harm they can inflict. And this is exactly what world is worried about. And it’s the major flaw of the book. For, the world today is more concerned about the horrific transgressions and malfeasances the social media are striking society with. The author seems to be unaware of the profound damages social media inflict, particularly on the young generation: as amply demonstrated recently by Nepal.

Jaron Lanier’s book, titled Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Accounts, Right Now… is a tiny good quick orientation for telling us why social media accounts should be ‘deleted right now’. It seems he is so very antagonized, enraged and infuriated with the social media platforms that he urges the readers to be done away with his / her accounts at once, RIGHT NOW.

He offers ‘powerful and personal reasons’ for everyone to leave these ‘dangerous online platforms.’ Here are the author’s TEN arguments for deleting your social media accounts:

1.You are losing your free will. 2. Quitting social media path to sanity; 3. social media is making you into a asshole; 4. Social media is undermining truth; 5. Social media is making what you say meaningless. 6. Social media destroying your capacity for empathy. 7. Social media is making you unhappy. 8. Social media doesn’t want you to have economic dignity, 9. Social media is making politics impossible. And, 10. Social media hates your soul.

Meanwhile, as The New York Times reported from Kathmandu, “Social media ban lit the fuse; the Nepal government banned 26 social media platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, WeChat. Ban also raised fears: ban on free speech created panic fuelling anger of the young social media users lending support to the nation-wide protests; 54 or more deaths were reported.

Therefore, the brief message of Jaron Lanier’s book: better late than never, opines Jaron Lanier, and urges you to listen to the critics and friends ‘that bad stuff was happening… and it’s undeniably out in the open and that bad tech is doing us harm…but will we be resisting and help steer the world to a better place?’

Thus, the brief message says it all. Remember Nepal, France, Cambodia now…and may be more. But, as they say, prevention is better than cure. Once bitten twice shy.

Let’s say goodbye to social media, now and forever.

1. R. Dua, former professor-head, journalism department, Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), New Delhi, and an ex-faculty Journalism, California State University, US.