Sociology and Criminology-Open Access
Open Access

Interaction of Digital Media in Public

Lydia Mian^{* *}Correspondence: Lydia Mian, Department of Sociology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria, Email:

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Description

Social media are interactive media platforms that make it easier to create and share content through online communities and networks, including information, ideas, interests, and other kinds of expression. Despite difficulties in defining social media due to the range standalone and integrated social media services currently offered, there are certain common characteristics: Social media are Web 2.0 Internet-based interactive apps.

The lifeblood of social media is user-generated content, which includes written postings or comments, digital photographs or videos, and statistics from all online interactions. For the website or app, users build service-specific profiles that are created and maintained by the social media company. By linking a user's profile with those of other people or groups, social media aids in the growth of online social networks.

Social impacts

Disparity: The level of access to technology between households, socioeconomic levels, and other demographic groups is measured by the "digital gap." In contrast to middle class and upper class persons in metropolitan regions, who have very high rates of computer and Internet access, people who are homeless, poor, old, or live in isolated or rural communities may have little to no access to computers or the Internet. Other theories contend that in today's information culture, some people make Internet material while others only consume it. This disparity in behavior may be caused by the fact that only some educators use technology to foster critical thinking in their students.

Political polarization: Political polarization occurs when a person's opinions are more strongly influenced by their affiliation with a particular political party or ideology than by other variables. When someone selects information that supports their opinions and avoids information that contradicts those beliefs, this is known as selective exposure. It was discovered that the study's Twitter participants interacted infrequently with people and information that held opinions different from their own, potentially amplifying the impact of polarization.

Stereotyping: Recent studies have shown that social media and the media in general have the ability to broaden the scope of stereotypes in people of all ages. Ageism is evident in both instances where young people and the elderly were stereotyped. The presumptive traits of the person who is being stereotyped can be interpreted in both positive and negative ways, but they typically convey an opposing point of view. For instance, young people are frequently portrayed on social media platforms as immature, indolent people who lack motivation or love for other things. For instance, many young people were held responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic's global lockdowns and were accused of spreading the disease. The kids find it challenging to innovate and disprove stereotypes, particularly when a sizable portion of the population thinks the stereotypes are remarkably true. It is crucial that the preconceptions are reduced so that the young groups that are present on social media do not feel rejected because they are typically at a new period of their lives and preparing to make life-changing decisions. Furthermore, stereotypes about the elderly are frequent since they are thought to be a group of people who are uninformed about how social media works and how to use its vocabulary. These prejudices frequently aim to prevent older generations from participating in trends or other online activity.

Effects on youth communication: Mass intercultural dialogue and cultural exchange are now possible thanks to social media. Different cultures speak differently because they have various value systems, cultural themes, grammatical constructions, and worldviews. Social media platforms' existence brought together distinct cultural thought patterns and modes of expression, as well as varied cultural ways of communicating. Social media has changed how young people communicate by introducing new linguistic forms. To reduce the amount of time it takes to answer online, abbreviations have been created. Due to the widespread usage of social media and the abbreviation "LOL" by users of all ages, especially as individuals get older, "LOL" has come to be understood as the term for "laugh out loud" on a global scale. While social media is a terrific method to learn about your neighborhood and the wider globe, younger audiences' communication skills have declined as the technology has developed. Teens no longer fret about the effects of social media because of its digital nature. They frequently don't consider what they are sending and take longer to formulate their sentences. As a result, they find it more difficult to carry on conversations in real-world contexts. Social media also fosters a poisonous environment where people attack each other online; as a result, when confronted in person, they behave in the same way without concern for the repercussions. However, social media also helps young people and their communication. Adolescents can pick up fundamentally useful social and technical skills. Children and young adults who utilize social media are better able to maintain friendships with family and friends, establish new acquaintances, and take part in community involvement events and services.