Safety Online

Blog Post #3

Social media has become a part of our everyday lives. So much so, that many people start off the day scrolling through their feed. 

Many of my peers have social media, many have started when they were in 3rd grade. So, when I heard about Instagram for kids I felt a little worried. The main reason is that I had a lot of self image issues due to my use of social media. I worry for the kid's safety, as a lot of information about people can be found on social media. 

(image from eLearning Industry)

I think that these apps do a lot more harm than good. A lot of the mental issues that youth face today are results of being on social media. There are a lot of good people out there, but there are also bad. People that post gore or cyberbullies are always on social media. It could cause a  lot of problems if kids were given unsupervised access to the internet.  

I had social media before I was 13, and many of my friends also had social media before they were 13. A lot of us have issues that have started with being on social media too much. My experience with social media was fine at first, but then it also introduced me to unhealthy ideologies, like ‘you’re only pretty if you’re skinny’, ‘*insert thing I have* isn’t feminine'. Posts like that have caused many of my insecurities, people push these ideas onto other people so much that it can cause a huge toll on someone’s mental health. 

Once something is on the internet, it is there forever. Things on the internet can spread like wildfire. Social media is not safe for kids under 13 to use. Even if it’s ‘for kids’. People can collect the child’s information without their knowledge. That is why COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, prevents people under 13 from joining social media, or even signing up for e-mails. I wonder if  it will work like Kids Messenger,  where parents approved their contacts. But even with that, they will still see random things in there feed or explore page. 

Honestly, the age limits do not prevent kids from signing up for these apps. They can fake their age and theirs not really any way to check. Even when reporting accounts, Instagram or any other social media does not really check. Whenever I report accounts, I feel like they are just dismissed. 

Next Level?

Blog Post #1

Celebrities are constantly under the ridicule of the public eye. So much so, that it makes me wonder: Do we hold celebrities to a higher standard than others?

Personally, I believe they are unfairly held to a higher standard. We expect them to be perfect and happy all the time. At times, we can forget that they are also human. I think that the higher expectations placed on celebrities put them under a lot of stress, and honestly, we shouldn't treat celebrities to such a standard. Yes, they are public figures that need to be held accountable, but they should also be able to live freely like the rest of us. Sometimes, celebrities would face backlash for unimportant things, like not liking another famous person, and some people make it into a big deal. It sounds exhausting. 

Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock at the Oscar's (From New York Times)

Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars for making a joke about Will's wife. I don't think that Chris Rock should've made that G.I. Jane 2 joke. It is known that Jada Pinkett Smith has alopecia and suffers from hair loss. It was disrespectful. But, Will Smith shouldn't have slapped him, even if he deserved it. 

I can't think of an incident in real life where a celebrity behaved out of expectation, but I can think of an example that happened in a drama called "It's Okay to not be Okay". In episode 2 of the series, a popular children's book author, Ko Munyeong, swore and grabbed the hair of a man that was interrupting her signing event. Her actions resulted in her newly released book being recalled and heavy backlash from the public. 

Celebrities should be held accountable when they act poorly. Celebrities shouldn't be treated differently just because they are celebrities. They should be held accountable, just like regular people. For example, if a celebrity commits a crime, they shouldn't be pardoned because they are famous. 

Overall, I think that both parties were wrong in this situation. Chris Rock shouldn't have made that joke and Will Smith shouldn't have hit him. In my opinion, the Oscars this year were not that interesting for me. The award show is only interesting to watch when something unexpected happens.