Social media as a news source | Solutional Webdesign Antwerpen

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Social media^[1] as a news source refers to the utilization of platforms like Facebook^[2], Twitter^[6], TikTok^[7], and Instagram^[3] to disseminate and consume news content. Unlike traditional news outlets such as newspapers and television^[4], social media allows non-professionals to create and share news. This has led to a shift in the types of news content encountered, with a significant emphasis on politics, public affairs, and trending topics. While this has enabled a broader range of voices to be heard, it has also raised concerns about the accuracy, bias, and negativity of news shared. Additionally, distinguishing credible news from fake news^[5] can be challenging. Despite these concerns, a significant percentage of adults use social media as a source of news, particularly in the 18-29 age bracket. The appeal to younger audiences is further bolstered by the rise of influencers as news sources. However, social media is often an incidental, not primary, news source for many users.

Terms definitions

1. ↑ Social media ( Social media ) Social media is a broad term encompassing a variety of digital tools and platforms that facilitate the sharing of information and the creation of virtual communities. Emerging from early systems like PLATO and ARPANET, it has evolved into modern platforms like Facebook and Twitter. These platforms offer unique features that differentiate them from traditional media, including the ability for users to generate content and engage in dialogic communication. They cater to over 100 million users globally and offer different forms of services, such as messaging apps and collaborative content creation platforms. The use of social media has far-reaching impacts on individuals, society, and businesses, influencing everything from marketing practices to political processes. However, it's also associated with ethical concerns, such as the spread of misinformation and potential addiction.

2. ↑ Facebook ( Facebook ) Facebook, now known as Meta Platforms, is a major Internet company that started as a social networking platform. Founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, Facebook expanded rapidly from Harvard to other universities and later to the general public, becoming a global phenomenon. It is known for its user-friendly interface and various features such as Groups, the Developer Platform, and Facebook Dating. Despite facing criticism for issues like privacy breaches and the spread of fake news, Facebook has remained a dominant player in the online world. It has made significant strides in the field of technology, including the development of its unique data storage system, the use of PHP for its platform, and the launch of the Hack programming language. In recent years, the company has shifted its focus to the metaverse, a virtual reality space where users can interact with a computer-generated environment.

Glossary

Social media as a news source (Wikipedia)

Social media as a news source is the use of online social media platforms rather than moreover traditional media platforms to obtain news. Just as television turned a nation of people who listened to media content into watchers of media content in the 1950s to the 1980s, the emergence of social media has created a nation of media content creators. Almost half of Americans use social media as a news source, according to the Pew Research Center.

As a participatory platform that allows for user-generated content and sharing content within one's own virtual network, using social media as a news source allows users to engage with news in a variety of ways, including:

Consume news
Discover news
Share or repost news
Post their own photos, videos, or reports of news (i.e., engage in citizen or participatory journalism)
Comment on news

Using social media as a news source has become an increasingly more popular way for old and young adults alike to obtain information. There are ways that social media positively affects the world of news and journalism but it is important to acknowledge that there are also ways in which social media has a negative affect on the news that people consume such as false news, biased news, and disturbing content.

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