Analyzing Social Media: Advantages, Disadvantages & Credibility Online

This essay examines the advantages and disadvantages of social media, focusing on the ease of obtaining information, connectivity, and potential risks such as scams, privacy threats, and addiction. It reflects on how understanding these aspects can influence career-related social media use, emphasizing the importance of building a brand while avoiding unproductive addiction and being cautious about online interactions to protect personal data. The essay also addresses credibility issues arising from information shared on the internet, highlighting the challenges of verifying sources and the impact of content syndication on accuracy. The document provides references to support the analysis of social media's impact and credibility.

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Name of Student
Institution Affiliation

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The use of social media platforms to achieve various objectives has become quite popular
in the recent past. Most commonly used social media platforms are Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, and Whatsapp. It is believed that social media platforms are used by over 3 billion
people, representing about 30% of the world population. Social media use has pertinent issues
centered on its advantages, disadvantages, and credibility of information.
The advantages and disadvantages of easily obtainable information
The emergence of social media has made access to information quite easy. With only a
click of the button, a person can gain access to a wide range of information readily available on
social media platforms.
Advantages
Convenience is one of the benefits of social media information. Individuals using various
social media platforms can quickly get the information at any time and location so long as they
are connected to the internet (Moreau, 2018). Additionally, they are not required to part with any
amount of money to get the information. Also, readily available information allows people to
multitask (Moreau, 2018). People are not only able to get real time updates, but they can also go
through the data while chatting with multiple friends or listening to music.
Disadvantages
The challenge of verification of social media information is one of the disadvantages
associated with easily available information. With the tones of information posted on social
media, it can be quite difficult to ascertain which of the information is truthful (Zhukova,2018).
Additionally, most of the information is gotten from sources whose credibility cannot be
determined. Sometimes information which cannot be verified may lead to a lot of damage before

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the actual truth is known (Moreau, 2018). Also, with the increasing number of people sharing
information on social media platforms, it can be quite overwhelming for the people reading the
information.
Advantages and disadvantages of social media
Advantages
Connectivity
Connectivity is perhaps the most important advantage of social media. Social media
platforms allow individuals from different parts of the world to connect regardless of their
physical location. Connectivity allows people to share knowledge and thoughts (Ahmad, 2016).
It can help businesses reach larger audiences because of the large number of users
Based on a large number of people using social media platforms, social media presents a great
opportunity for businesses to reach larger audiences with an interest in the company's products
and services Marketing, D. (2019)
Social media platforms can be used as educational tools.
Students and teachers benefit significantly from social media platforms. They can interact with
experts in various filed which enables them to important information in their fields. By
connecting with experts, they can expand their knowledge conveniently (Ahmad, 2016).
Disadvantages
Social media facilitates frauds and scams
There has been an increasing number of people scammed by impostors on social media.
Such people lure unsuspecting users and end up conning them. Cash grabs, phishing requests,
and hidden charges are the most common social media scams (Ahmad, 2016).
A threat to privacy and personal data

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Hacking is also a common disadvantage for social media users. Cases of hacking of
personal data have been on the rise in the recent past especially on Facebook and Twitter. Also,
identity theft is also common. These can lead to financial losses and affect individuals personal
lives (Ahmad, 2016).
Addiction
The use of social media is highly addictive. Addiction to social media can significantly affect
personal lives and make individuals less productive. People may also end up isolating themselves
from the rest of society (Ahmad, 2016).
How my knowledge of the disadvantages and advantages may alter the use of social media
in my career
Knowledge of these disadvantages will be quite impactful in my career. With the
knowledge of the advantages offered by social media, I might tend to use it to build my brand.
However, I will only limit my use of social media to only specific hours to avoid addiction issues
which can lead to unproductively. Finally, with the knowledge gained, I will also become more
conscientious with the links i open and the deals I engage in to avoid privacy issues and loss of
personal data
Credibility issues arising from information presented on the Internet
Various credibility issues may arise from the information presented on social media.First,
unlike other traditional media, the use of social media to share information is quite cheap. All
that is needs is a computer or phone. This ease makes people share whatever information they
feel like sharing. Tracking the origin of information shared on the internet may also be an uphill
task (Feedforall, 2019). The issue of credibility is further inhibited by content syndication. While
the original source of information might be accurate, this is not guaranteed for the shared copies.

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References
Ahmad, B. (2016). 10 Advantages and Disadvantages of Social Media for Society -. Retrieved
from https://www.techmaish.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-social-media-for-
society/
Feedforall. (2019). Questioning Credibility Online. Retrieved from
https://www.feedforall.com/questioning-credibility-online.htm
Kriscautzky, M., & Ferreiro, E. (2014). The credibility of information on the Internet: criteria
stated and criteria used by Mexican students. Educação e Pesquisa, 40(4), 913-934.
http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1517-97022014000400004

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Marketing, D. (2019). Top 13 Advantages and Disadvantages of Social Media. Retrieved from
https://www.webfx.com/internet-marketing/social-media-marketing-advantages-and-
disadvantages.html
Moreau, E. (2018). The Good and the Bad About Social Networking. Retrieved from
https://www.lifewire.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-social-networking-3486020
Zhukova, A. (2018). 7 Negative Effects of Social Media on People and Users. Retrieved from
https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/negative-effects-social-media/