Social media has become a regular part of people’s lives. Do the advantages of this outweigh the disadvantages?
Humans are historically hardwired to indulge in entertainment.
This
tendency persists to this
day, and people
's obsession with social media
is one of them. Whether or not this
is a positive development is up for discussion.
Some people
see social media
as nothing but a setback. In other words
, it is as though social media
platforms are designed to doom humanity. For example
, Instagram and Tik Tok, the two dominating social media
apps popular with teenagers, hamper people
's attention span. They do so by grabbing the user's attention thanks to their incredibly entertaining, albeit disappointingly short 'reels'. Clearly, exposure to such
content is likely to compromise people
's ability to do tasks that would require undivided attention, such
as studying. On an individual level, this
may appear to be trivial, but given that more people
than ever are engaging in social media
, it raises serious concerns.
That said, it's not all bad news. Social media
is only an updated form of TV, for example
. Just as people
in the past were alarmingly addicted to watching television, so are they hooked on social media
for some time. The sense of novelty is likely to wear off at the end
of the day, and social media
will — or has perhaps already - become normal. In fact, most people
have been quick to use this
seemingly disturbing commodity to their advantage. One such
example is teens, and possibly some adults, running a YouTube channel, such
as video game enthusiasts. Not only are these people
able to tap into their craft in a way that entertains them, but they are also
fortunate enough to make the kind of money they otherwise
couldn't.
But money isn't the be-all and end-all — there is more to social media
than just that. The social aspect of it, as the name suggests, is what matters. In particular
, it is thanks to social media
that all those introverted people
finally
have the chance to socialize without being overwhelmed by in-person conversations. These people
could get in touch with their fellow internet users and carry out conversations on any topics they like from the comfort of their beds. Even more importantly, social media
can make people
's lives easier on all fronts. For those living far away from their families, it can be such
a valuable tool — apps like Instagram have video-call features that connect to users in a face-to-face conversation in a matter of seconds. This
would mean that social media
only streamlines our lives in terms of communication and thus
contending it destructive isn't justified.
In conclusion, it goes without question that social media
dominates everyone's life in this
day and age, which begs the question: does it do more harm than good? It makes sense to assume that it is a force for destruction because, after all, it is undermining people
's intellect in certain ways. However
, I believe that the financial and social benefits that come with it outweigh any potential threats associated with this
medium of entertainment.Submitted by tjumagul67 on
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Answer the 'Advantages and Disadvantages' topic
IELTS advantages and disadvantages questions normally give you a statement and ask you to comment on the advantages and disadvantages of that statement.
Answer structure for the type of essay
- Introduction
- Body paragraph 1 – advantages
- Body paragraph 2 – disadvantages
- Conclusion
Examples to start your body paragraph:
- The main advantage is...
- The disadvantage of this...
- The main benefit...
- Despite these advantages...
- One possible drawback...
