Prompt: Many people believe that social media sites such as Facebook have had a huge negative impact on both individuals and society. To what extent do you agree?

The effect of social media sites on the society is alarming. Several individuals believe that social media platforms like Facebook exerts a detrimental effect on individuals and the public. In my opinion, I totally agree that the internet community has negative influences on individuals and the society. Ċ To begin with, social media affects the mental health of individuals. Because, the constant distraction from social media affects attention span. Also, many people who regularly use platforms like Facebook reports high stress level, which contributes to mental ailments, some people use their sleep or leisure period to chat and engage in social media, these habits thereby, affects mental alertness. For instance, an environmental study revealed that most youths who spend the majority of their time on Facebook, perform badly at school work because their attention span towards class activities are reduced. Ċ In addition, there is a wide spread of false information from interactive media. Because, there is no restriction on the information posted online, thus some people may share fake information that are misleading to the community. Consequently, those false news can have a negative societal influence. To illustrate, due to the recent Corona Virus Pandemic, a post went viral on Facebook about the drug Chloroquine being a cure for the virus, this led to the majority of the population abusing the drugs. Hence, they were affected by the side effects of the medication and were subsequently admitted. Ċ In conclusion, reduced mental capacity and spread of misleading contents are negative outcomes of social sites for people and the environment.