As I read, Cicero’s Twitter: Tom Standage on the forgotten history of social media, I came across a phrase in one of the questions asked by the interviewer Jesse Hicks that says 

“Yet today many of us would assume that not only should social media not be regulated, but that it can’t be regulated.”

This particular phrase stuck out to me because of the idea that most people feel like social media should not be regulated and it’s impossible to regulate it, despite some advancements done over the years. In a perfect world I believe that social media should be regulated because there has definitely been some obscene things being posted daily and most importantly a lot of misinformation. But we live in the real world and that’s just not possible, and I say this because there are a lot of areas and technicalities that would need to be covered. Facebook is one of those social media sites that has tried to stop users from posting anything that gets flagged by their filters that would seem inappropriate. They also have done this with other platforms they own such as Instagram where you can post anything but if it contains any explicit content it will blur it out and allow the users to click if they wish to see it anyways. Facebook and Instagram also have a fact checked feature that allows its users to see why a certain article that was shared contains false information and/or is not reliable.

Props to Facebook for making it happen but even as it tries to regulate what gets shared and posted, a lot still slips through the cracks and there’s often no concrete security. Can we be upset at Facebook and other social media sites/platforms for this? To some extent maybe they can be doing more but this issue doesn’t just fall on them. They are regulating as best they can and in some way it feels like it’s still not enough, so perhaps social media can’t be regulated. 

If it can’t be regulated, then is it just big free for all? Another idea to think about should be about what values are being spread because of social media. As seen in the video, How social media is affecting teens, it is mentioned that over the years the values presented to the people have changed from a sense of community to wanting to reach for fame. This is evident all around us when you start to think about all the internet celebrities on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms. Many of today’s youth strive to be what is known as “Instagram famous” by posting content that attracts other people. Although not everyone makes it big, the goal is still there and for those who get to the top, often make the most of what they can with their talents or personality. Others find themselves going through great lengths just for fame even if it means corrupting their morality. 

The only thing most kids want nowadays is to be famous on the internet and with how easy the internet allows it to begin is something that makes me wonder if there can be any regulation on this. Obviously it would be impossible because then it gets complicated on how values are portrayed and what about them would need to be regulated. Perhaps the only way to regulate anything begins at home with parents reinforcing values and taking control of how much time a child spends on social media. Maybe, some form of regulation starts at home and the responsibility is shared with parents and the social media giants.

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