How often do you think about what you do online before you do it? Before really getting into social media, I didn't think about what I posted online. Back when Instagram was just a new company and Snapchat and Tik Tok didn't even exist yet. Back whenever I was only a middle schooler. However, I learned some pretty vital information when I got into high school that changed the way I looked at social media and my online presence, as a whole.
When I was in high school, I remember having speakers every other week that would come during our lunch time and give speeches about the information that we put online and what the people on the internet can do with that information once it is out there. It was a very similar experience to Sonia Bokhari, a 14 year old student who wrote the article titled "I'm 14 and I quit social media after discovering what was posted about me." In this article, Sonia speaks of an organization that came to warn her school of the dangers of having an online presence.
"The presenters from an organization called OK2SAY, which educates and helps teenagers about being safe online, emphasized that we shouldn’t ever post anything negative about anyone or post unapproved inappropriate pictures, because it could very deeply affect our school lives and our future job opportunities. They also warned us about online predators, which was something that always stressed me out when I was online, because I could scroll through any profile of a person I don’t know and they could’ve been someone that wanted to do me harm." - Sonia Bokhari
Hearing these things being said to me by adults, I also realized that this was a serious issue. However, as I grew older and started to think about the situation a little bit more, I realized that these companies and organizations are not trying to scare you into deleting all of your social media accounts and going "off the grid." These organizations simply want you to recognize these possible dangers and do with that information what you will. For me, I see a lot of opportunity within social media. As a future filmmaker, social media is one of the most easy and effective ways for people to see my work. However, just because I have public social media accounts does not mean that I put all of my information out there or that I am not careful with how I go about what I post online.
I think that a lot of people see this information and forget about all of the good that social media has also brought. The biggest takeaway I got from this assignment is that I am keeping myself up to date with positive and negative knowledge about the world of social media and my online footprint, as I actively make my decisions on what to post online and what I want to keep private. Wanting a certain level of privacy and being cut off from the online world do not mean the same thing. Stay informed and be careful with your online footprint!
Sources: https://www.fastcompany.com/90315706/kids-parents-social-media-sharing
https://www.fastcompany.com/90333854/to-really-protect-our-privacy-lets-put-some-numbers-on-it
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