Is social media usage good or bad and why

Author’s Name
Instructor’s name
Course
Date
Social Media Usage
Social media has become a global phenomenon attracting millions of users from all over the world. In the year 2015, statistics indicated that a teenager spends 27 hours a week on social media. Social media benefits include; educational values through the creation of learning platforms that enable teenagers to access educational material, interact and exchange ideas with fellow students and their instructors and integrate learning. On the other hand, there are even more detriments associated with the use of social media such as the moral decay of the society, cyberbullying and crime among others. This essay identifies various negative issues related to social media and demonstrates that the usage of social media is a bad thing.

One of the controversial and inarguably the most widespread issue associated with social media is cyberbullying. Social media platforms such as Yik Yak and Online confessions contributed to a culture of hatred, racism, and discrimination among the youth. These perpetrating actions not only spark hatred and resentment but also lead to physical abuse and even murder in several universities such as Drake, Emory and University of Oklahoma (Mahler 117). Cyberbullying has also been associated with low self-esteem and depression among students, leading to suicide among its victims; who usually perceive the society and the world at large as unfair. On a broader scale, social media has…