Social media has changed the face of news reporting. News and information are spreading faster than ever and readers no longer have to actively seek out articles. News is readily available on their feeds. However, traditional news outlets prioritize factuality and reliability, which is not always the case with information shared on social media.
“I think that the spread of news on social media is contagious, as the information, whether it is factual or not, is designed to reach as many people as possible,” said junior SunDevil Times Editor-in-Chief Lily Check. “User interaction and the aspect of shareability are why news on social media circulates so easily.”
Social media often focuses on providing a highly entertaining experience, rather than focusing on facts or balanced news.
“I think social media news is damaging this generation’s ability to decipher safe sources from scams/misinformation,” said junior Sam Turner.
According to a poll of students and staff, the majority utilize social media as their primary source of news.
“I will usually see news on various platforms and often I will go back and I will determine what kind of source it is, where the source is coming from, is the source more biased, is it more propaganda or is it more unbiased,” said teacher Mrs. Jessica Fiedler. “I am just not looking at one source to get my news, I am looking at many different sources.”
True journalists work tirelessly to get factual information and then assemble an article for readers, but the instant gratification culture of social media has put them in a difficult situation. Often it’s now about who gets the story out first, not necessarily who gets all their facts right.
“Journalists rely on people reading their content to make a living,” said Check. “If my work as a journalist does not receive attention due to inaccurate information on social media that the readers portray as factual, it would be extremely degrading and frustrating.”
The Millennials were the last to experience news without the influence of social media. Generation Z has grown up in the digital world and this has resulted in generational gaps in how individuals consume the news.
“I think that there is a tendency to start doom scrolling especially when you align with a certain ideology and you think things will not work in your favor,” said Fiedler. “I think it can lend to a lot of unneeded stress. I did not have that kind of stuff growing up, social media was still new, we didn’t have news like that and it was so irregularly available.”
There are dependable social media news sources such as Purity, Impact, and reputable news outlets with social media accounts. For more information on this topic, check out Anton Konopliov‘s article in Red Line. It has infographics that go into great detail.
