Genre Recast Essay: Social Media

Genre Recast Essay

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pintrest, and MySpace are making us, the youth of America, stupid. American youth today have taken to digital media to do everything from ranting about professors to posting memes making fun of groups of people. In the following essay I hope to arm the youth of America with the knowledge to defend their internet-addicted selves from the ever increasing negative adult view of social media. In doing so, I will be using different research reports done by the Pew Internet and American Life Center. American teens are not going “brain dead” as stated by some scholars by spending a majority of their time on the internet, instead statistics show that teens are becoming more informed, health conscious, and politically educated while on Social Media and the internet.

“Knowledge is power. Information is power. The secreting or hoarding of knowledge or information may be an act of tyranny camouflaged as humility.” (Robin Morgan). According to Pew Internet surveys, about 2/3 of teens and young adults get their current event news from the internet regardless of their age, race, or financial status, also showing an increase in usage during election years (Rainie). The Laughing Matters text by Chris Harris raises the issue of kids not understanding basic American history, geography and so forth. Looking at the statistics of teens that get their current event news from the internet leads me to believe that students are more interested in what is happening in the world around them right now, rather than what has happened in the past. This also shows that teens are showing a rising interest in current news, which is accessed by most by way of social media. Think of the past few major news events such as; killing of Osama Bin Laden, Newtown CT school shooting, or even the over throw of the Egyptian government. Most if not all students didn’t happen to catch these on the 6 o’clock news or the newspaper the following morning, they were blasted with posts about them on social media and the internet. The internet, as a means of spreading information, acted magnificently on these days in history, providing us with current and relevant news.

Beyond its role as a communications hub, the internet gives users access to vital information pertaining to health and wellness. Over 2/3 of teens 14-17 years old have used the internet to look up health, diet, or physical fitness information (Lenhart). That’s a staggering statistic, especially when you think