Let's truly foster quality social media

The “lines” are often blurry on social media sites. Is it “private” or “public”? Is it “friend” or “fan”? Is it sincere admiration or jealousy in disguise? We can rarely tell. Even if we can clearly tell, others probably can’t. 

With the use of social media channels like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram passing an exponential point, controversies will be more abundant. In one of the latest cases involving Thailand, a Thai Facebook user triggered an uproar by insulting Filipinos on his “wall” after posting racist comments. 

Whether it’s a personal comment or not, one thing should be clear to all social media users: Nothing can really be private if it’s posted online. Someone somewhere can always get to your rant, your love messages, your expression of extreme hatred or your dirty jokes. Anything can go viral, and when it does, damage can be irreparable.

There have been incidents that underscore the need to use the social media wisely, responsibly and prudently. Like everything, social media has its good, bad and ugly sides. The benefits are there for all to see and are getting even more obvious. 

The current campaign against the growing influence of a convenient store chain has been quite effective. Friends are sharing valuable knowledge and information in a manner unimaginable just a few years ago. Childhood friendships are not fading away like those of the older generations, but are taking a firm foothold thanks to all the tools and applications.

The bad and ugly sides can be either apparent or subtle. Many are known to associate self-esteem with the number of “likes” they receive for a post. Meanwhile, if you don’t watch it, “fake friendship” can get in your way. And while there are cases of introverts being encouraged to express themselves on social media, many people have presented false personalities to create good impressions or, in the extreme, for fraudulent purposes. Depression can be rampant, too, if news feeds feature other people’s exotic vacations or better day-to-day lives.

The Philippines incident shows that emotions or “judgements” can go a full circle on social media. First a Thai man used Facebook to rant about Filipinos, using strong language to say the least. Then an uproar on social media virtually crucified him, causing a wave of sympathy for someone who might not have intended his comments to go public. The latter uproar was against the initial uproar. 

This seems ironic because it begs the question of how sincere we should be on social media. If we speak our minds about, say, a foreign nation and use language some would deem improper, are we exercising a freedom of speech and are others just prying? Or are we wrong no matter what, because there are things that are wrong whether they are done privately or publicly?

The issue divides opinions, just like the case of the cycling-for-health trend and road safety. But the bottom line is that the anything goes phase of social media is coming to an end. 

The need to foster social media is stronger than ever before, because when something has become a big part of our lives, we have to act responsibly. When friends share tips on how to live well using day-to-day cheap methods or materials, social media is used responsibly. When false tips are spread about some foods, fruits or drinks for commercial purposes, social media has become a tool for deception with a potentially dangerous outcome.

It’s time to review how we use social media. We all know we must be responsible using it, but the time to be truly responsible must have come a lot sooner than many people thought.