New and Digital media Articles Part 1

Social media is harming the mental health of teenagers. The state has to act

This story is explaining the new and rising issues of the social media has on teenagers, the studies believe that teenagers who spend the majority of their nights on social media site and prevents them from sleep would lead to their depression and anxiety problems.

"A new study has found that teenagers who engage with social media during the night could be damaging their sleep and increasing their risk of anxiety and depression. Teenagers spoke about the pressure they felt to make themselves available 24/7, and the resulting anxiety if they did not respond immediately to texts or posts. Teens are so emotionally invested in social media that a fifth of secondary school pupils will wake up at night and log on, just to make sure they don’t miss out."

The reporter quoted how social media has had an impact on their little sister.

"There are so many social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Tumblr, you name it. I made a conscious decision to avoid Snapchat and Instagram because of the social pressure I saw them putting on my 14-year-old little sister. If my mum turned off the WiFi at 11pm, my sister would beg me to turn my phone into a hotspot. She always needed to load her Snapchat stories one more time, or to reply to a message that had come in two minutes ago because she didn’t want her friend to feel ignored. If I refused, saying she could respond in the morning, I’d get the “You’re ruining my social life” speech. Even as a teenager as well, I sometimes find this craze a little baffling."

Is it safe to turn your children into YouTube stars?

“Parents need to think very carefully about how the material they are filming is available for the world to see in perpetuity,” says Prof John Oates, a Senior Lecturer in the Child and Youth Studies Group at the Open University, and founder of the British Psychological Society’s Media Ethics Advisory Group (BPS). This year, he has represented the BPS in the UK government’s development of regulations to safeguard child performers. 

This story talks about whether its safe or not to record and post videos of your kids on YouTube. this article talks about the impact it would have on the kids when they grow up, some studies believe that the kids could grow up and face problems such as emotional distress because of how much their lives have been publicised.

“The first potential harm is simple emotional distress,” says Oates, “followed by harm to self-esteem, and a loss of a sense of autonomy.