Social media apps such as TikTok and Instagram have increasingly become nesting grounds for fear-mongering and misinformation. With each swipe, there is a different piece of media to be consumed that will stay on your mind for the rest of the day, week or even month.
Do you find yourself becoming easily distracted while doing schoolwork? You probably have ADHD. Did you just walk up a flight of stairs, and now you are having a hard time breathing and maybe are even feeling a bit lightheaded? You are having a heart attack. Did you see that President Trump is planning on making a statement soon? The United States is going to war. This is what social media does.
When tensions started rising between Iran and Israel, I could not take my eyes off TikTok. My For You Page convinced me that the United States was right in the middle of a war, and we would have a sorry ending. I then realized that all of the “facts” I had gathered were from fifteen-second videos made by other young adults. Young adults who thrived off my fear and attention.
Unfortunately, this is how most people receive their information today. A post will pop up on their screen, they read the snippet, believe it, and move on. Digging deeper has vanished.
The lack of curiosity in our generation greatly frustrates me. The world is becoming too quick to believe the first thing they see and spread it to those around them. This is why there is an influx of misinformation today; it spreads like wildfire across platforms with talk of “did you see” or “look at this.” It is such a dangerous practice that is consistently overlooked.
Access to information is a privilege that we are all lucky to have. With social media, however, we are depleting ourselves of that privilege. There is no external force taking it from us; we do it to ourselves and bring down others. We should be angry with ourselves, sad, upset, striving for change. Why are we okay with not knowing the full story?
I came to this realization a few months ago and vowed to always check my facts or research further than what popped up on my phone. Now, I want to bring the failure of questioning to the attention of everyone else.
In September 2022, a report stated that at least 20% of videos on top news stories on TikTok presented misinformation. More than half of users on TikTok say that they frequently get their news from the site. We may feel educated on the issues in today’s world because we are constantly fed information, but in reality, we are absorbing a multitude of lies and incomplete stories.
It is time to wake up. We need to realize that this is not okay, and we owe it to ourselves to be fully aware of what is actually occurring. When you see a story on TikTok, Instagram, X or any other social platform, take a step back, research the facts and inform yourself.
There is too much deception out there to believe the first thing we encounter. Be upset that this is what we have let ourselves come to. Do not allow yourself to take the easy way out because being informed is one of the greatest powers a human has. Refuse to give up your ability to be in the know, and refuse to let others relinquish theirs. Be curious, ask questions, and always yearn for more, because that is the cure to the epidemic of misinformation.
Rylee Drees is a freshman studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note the opinions expressed in this column do not represent those of The Post. Want to talk to Rylee about their column? Email them at rd198224@ohio.edu
