Social media has some very interesting characteristics. On one hand, the rate of change and brevity of content along with the greater focus on visuals align well with the psychological preference of a less patient young generation. Ironically, the very same media uses algorithms to identify users’ areas of interest to keep them glued to the screen in spite of a generally lower attention span. Therein lies the power of the social media. It manages to extract from a quick-to-distract generation something that a lot of other things cannot: attention. Furthermore, social media offers millions the opportunity to share their views as well as images freely and instantly.  In comparison to this, traditional media is slower and has a level of screening. This makes social media a double-edged dagger. Access for everyone makes it more democratic. Its speed and reach make it more efficient and effective for the propagation of views. These factors make it tool for empowerment. There are certainly many who have a genuinely good cause to propagate their views: the environment, women’s safety, the fight against corruption, philanthropy, developmental ideas and more. They no longer struggle to get widespread visibility for their causes and views just because they are not established writers, professional journalists, politically connected persons or celebrities. They are no longer held back by their lack of qualifications, wealth, power or a professional position. A notable example of the role played by social media in youth activism is of some teenagers from Parkland, Florida, USA leading the gun control conversation after an incident of shooting that led to the death of some of their teachers and schoolmates. As shared in an article2 published in Time magazine in March 2018, the students who began campaigning against the easy availability of guns began getting a lot of attention on social media. One of the key activists, who did not have an X (formerly Twitter) account before the shooting, reportedly had more followers than the National Rifle Association within days of the launch of the campaign. Now that speaks a lot about the power of social media in supporting youth activism.

On the other hand, social media also enables faceless players to spread anything they wish to propagate without being identified. This also implies that false information and divisive propaganda can spread more easily and much faster than through traditional media. What is important to consider here is that for many young people, social media has become the first and, many-a-time, the only go-to source of information. Many have never developed the connect that the previous generations had to newspapers and television. This domination of so many, mostly young, minds by social media also makes it a potent tool for manipulation. After all, it first feeds information faster into minds, shows responses and reactions from other users instantly and then begins feeding viewers other pieces of news or information related to what they are already reading or viewing. Therefore, soon after sending them in a specific direction, the mechanisms and algorithms of social media build a strong momentum to ensure that readers or viewers accelerate and keep going further to strengthen the view that was initially developed. It is not difficult to imagine and appreciate the consequences of such negative use of social media. Besides violence, that can lead to many young and impressionable minds joining a harmful cause. That can channelize the energy of youth in the wrong direction.

Considering the information above, one can appreciate that social media is just like so many other tools, and disciplines created by and phenomena discovered by humans. Some of them, such as fire and knives, are elementary. Others, such as automobiles, television sets and computers, are more evolved and sophisticated. The one thing common to all these developments is that they can be used or misused. For instance, a knife can be used for perfectly legitimate and harmless purposes such as cutting fruits and vegetables. Similarly, fire can be used to cook food and provide warmth and illumination. However, these very things can also be used to injure or kill. Therefore, social media is not good or evil on its own. The intention and quantum of its use are what can make it useful or destructive. Does this imply that society should just sit passively and watch the social media tug-of-war between good and evil? Certainly not. While excessive control is neither feasible nor desired, a basic framework is needed for the ethical use of social media. Some of the safeguards need to be put in place by governments. Others need to be created by technology companies and social media platforms themselves. These can include build-in fact checking tools. Timely action to make the usage of social media travel in the right direction is critical, especially for the youth. 

As always, there are some bright minds at work to bring about positive change with the power of education. For, there is no greater safeguard against the abuse of any tool than an enlightened user with sanity and rationality. Consider here the example of Keegan Lee. Featured in an article on people.com5 in October 2024, this 19-year old youth council member of the nonprofit Mental Health America experienced digital detoxification for some time. The experience motivated her to educate school students on the pros and cons of social media. The article also mentions that she even created a course that guides parents and educators to teach children healthy habits.