Musings of a Wandering Mind
Social Media - a Cure or a Disease?
By Faiza Khan
Newport Beach, CA
Social media is a lifestyle! Is it really though? I have argued with many acquaintances, friends, family, and any random stranger on their phone experimenting with snap chat filters who would care to listen to my rants. Yet, I have found myself fighting a losing battle to the verdict that it is now embedded in our lives as a must-have.
No matter how much hue and cry I have raised over avoiding it or boycotting it, I have found myself drawn towards it, not only by peer pressure but also through a self-inflicted curiosity to discover what this beast actually is. Is it a cult that we all have made a secret pact to be loyal to as long as we are connected to digital devices of our choosing? Or do we feel that - to disconnect from social media is congruent with social suicide? Perhaps it is synonymous with a crime that will not go unpunished by society in general as we are doing a dis-service to those who live a mundane life but can have a glimpse of the fun and glamorous lives of others.
Social media takes us far, far away from the banalities, the 9-5 grind, the household chores that surround us in our everyday existence. Or does it create an empty desire, a void that will never be filled? To play the devil’s advocate, in this article I have discussed the pros of social media and next week I will focus more on the cons from my perspective.
As a Pakistani-American I have often observed and compared the way “desis” like to portray themselves as opposed to Caucasian-Americans. Prior to delving into this comparison, I would like to clarify the definition/usage of the term “desi.” for the purposes of this article. Oxford Dictionary defines the term “desi” as a person of Pakistani, Indian, or Bangladeshi birth or descent who lives outside of these countries. The term originates from the Sanskrit word “Deshah” which means country or homeland. However, the term was expanded to include anyone who has roots in the subcontinent, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Fiji and even the Maldives. In present day, the list of ethnicities and countries are no longer important and the word “desi” has become a vastly inclusive term used in colloquial everyday lingo not only by Asians but also by those who are associated with us socially.
Here it would also be pertinent to broadly define what social media includes to provide context to my commentary in this piece. Social media was a term coined in 1997 when the first site “Six Degrees” allowed users to create profiles, upload photos, and connect with other users through the same platform. Prior to that ListServ and Internet Relay Chat (IRC) existed, but it was actually in the year 2002 when Friendster, a Malaysian-built platform (now defunct) started the trend. After Friendster, social media snowballed into LinkedIn (2003), Facebook (2004), YouTube (2005), Twitter (2006), WhatsApp (2009), TikTok (2017) to infinity and beyond. These days it is hard to keep track of social media websites.
Human interaction is down to dangerously minimal levels as users take comfort in hiding behind their screens to connect with strangers across the planet instead of making an effort to talk to someone sitting across from them.
With this background in mind I will connect the dots between desis and their interactions both “on” and “off” the social media. During the formative years of social media there was a dearth of desi social media users, influencers, bloggers and YouTubers. As the phenomenon spread and found its way into our households, presence of desis became more and more prominent. There was a new found freedom, an art-form of self-expression, a connectivity that came with social media in desi families. This movement started with a simplistic desire of families and friends living in their home countries to be connected to their loved ones so they could see photos or become part of events they physically could not attend due to geographical distances. Depending on the socio-economic classes it was deemed to be narcissistic or evil, irrelevant or excessive, superfluous or ridiculous, but nevertheless necessary and omnipresent. In all honesty, everyone I know is on some form of social media. Whether they are part of a WhatsApp group or are simply watching TikTok Videos they are connected in one way or another- no matter how hard they deny it.
It is interesting the way social media is consumed by desi households. Homemakers and housewives use it for recipes and for pinning down articles on home decor through Pinterest. It is common for teenage girls to follow YouTube tutorials from Make-up artists demonstrating make-up tricks for “brown skin”. Older folks use it to watch news, dramas, cricket matches and religious videos. And not to forget the potent demographic not restricted to any age limits, who strive day and night to glamorize their lives in some way, shape or form to get a million likes on their Instagram selfies or SnapChat stories.
I have seen my friends go on social media detox, to try to unplug, disconnect and unhook themselves only to return to this abyss after passage of time. I personally have tried to sequester myself from this so-called “disease” without much success. Until this day I struggle with the idea of putting my personal life on social media. I am leary as a consumer of social media, reluctant but ruthless in my quest to continue to make everyone aware of the dangers that come with it. My sincere advice to everyone out there is use social media to your best advantage in as you see it fit but be very aware of the ugly side of it that exists.
(Faiza Zia Khan holds a Master’s in Journalism degree from the University of British Columbia, Canada. She has collaborated with news media outlets including Global National and actively volunteers for several community investment projects for the Red Cross, United Way and the Breast Cancer Foundation)
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