A Glimpse Into The Social Life Of A College Student

When we think of social media, our minds automatically go towards the several apps we use in our everyday lives. For me, these apps would include Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and Tiktok. It is obvious that most teens in today's world use social media. But the real question that many people ask is why do we use social media? Well, in my recent COMM 373 class, we discussed affordance and it reasonated with me because I began to think about what affordance social media has. First let me begin by explaining what affordance is; it refers to the action possibilities provided to the actor by the environment. So in this case social media has different kinds of affordance for people all over the world. 

The main reason that I use social media is to stay updated on what's occurring in the world today and to communicate with family and friends. Altough, I of course have moments when I use it just because I am bored or just want to see funny content. I am sure many of you can relate to that LOL. Social media can have many different purposes. For example, I use apps all for different reasons. Instagram and Facebook is where I can see posts and stories and stay informed on what occurs around me. I follow a page called @themocoshow, this is where I see most of Montgomery County news, entertainment, business sponsors, and etc... Side note: you should definitely follow this page if you live in the Montgomery county area and are looking for new restaurant options :). 

Tiktok and Snapchat is where I mostly go to share content with friends and family members. They are apps where you can communicate in fun ways while also entertaining yourself and others. I will admit I don't post much on either but it is still fun to keep up with others content and laugh every once in a while. Tiktok is an app I highly recommend if you want to have a good laugh, although it is also very informative. On many occasions videos that include activist and social movements will occur on my for you page. It is always good to be able to see activism in a different unique form, in this case activists can get through to people, specifically teens, through video format. 

My use of social media has definitely changed over the years, I am not as invested in sharing my life as I use to be. I have become more private in what I post and how much of my life I decide to share with others. I use to use social media just for fun, but overtime I realized that the use for it has expanded. You can gain information, support a movement, make a difference, and the list goes on. I learned a lot from my class guest speaker, but one of the main things I learned was that social media is evolving and the use for it will evolve as well. Take facebook for example, it is very different from back then, at least from what I remember. Facebook has evolved in profile information and post ability. It was named the top social media platform by 2020. I don't know about you but I would have thought TikTok would be named the top social media platform, but maybe that's because I enjoy it the most LOL. Thanks for listening! See you guys next week with more :)

- VANESSA