Chapter Four
Social Media Concerns
Because the popularity of SM is increasing, there are more cases of abuses perpetrated with SM and this chapter focuses on those, listing the major threats and how protect from them.
Among those dangers, there is also the manipulation of user’s opinion due to the influence of false proclaims advertised on SM's applications, and the addiction generated by an excessive use of the SM’s applications and by the constant use of smart devices, which could generate forms of psychological problems such as anxiety or depression.
4.1 Drawback of Social Media
The common perception is that SM amplify users’ actions and make public the personal interests, information and ideas and when these data are shared it is difficult to have them private.
As mentioned in the previous chapters, before start using these new media it is important to understand their characteristics, benefit and risks. In contrast with TM, which are passive media, SM promote users interaction and they support also the expansion of personal connections and this generate more online discussion that can be used by other users eventually.
The following sub-sections are list of common SM dangers and actions that users can take to protect them self.
4.1.1 Opinion Manipulation: Social Media vs. Traditional Media
Social media, like any other media, can be used to alter the reputation of someone or something because, potentially, anyone can post false feedback, stories, or upload fake data and video with the purpose to damage or promote a person, an activity or a company. Furthermore, there is also the risk that uninformed users play into the hands of spiteful people when they share, like or approve comments, articles or videos on the Internet and these actions spread false information and could modify the perception of the reality. For example, false information could generate fear and anxiety and influencing a political vote or a purchase decision. SM include different channels of communication and they not protect from opinion manipulation but, on the other side, they provide a multitude users feedbacks and the possibility to reach the original source of news to verify the facts and act accordingly.
It is not avoiding the information that people protect them self from the risk of manipulation but verifying if the source of the information is reliable or not and doing specific research for news of interest, this means evaluate multiple media and multiple sources.
Dishonest people have been using TM for their scopes and the methods they use are sneaky because they deceive audience with false messages.
For example, people could use TM for political success, to keep the power or the status and, in general, for personal profit. For these scopes, TM are used to ridicule an opponent, to alter the perception of the reality and boycott an activity with false statements, or information. The list below reports different strategies used to manipulate public opinion:
a) Guilt by Association. Usually, this method shows the picture of an opponent beside an article of lawbreaking or during the report of illegal actions or involves the victim in some shady story even if this is false but only done to confuse the audience.
b) Verisimilitude. This strategy makes appear something real when it is not. This is accomplished exaggerating plausible stories and situations or using fantasy characters in real context. The Verisimilitude alter the perception of the reality because the frequency and the vivid actions can make believe that the message is consistent or that it is completely true and people evaluate their life based on that message. There are many examples in movies, cartoons and series TV, such as programs with superheroes, drama series that give the impression that a tropical island is one of the most dangerous places to live for invented crime stories or also programs that show our cities invaded by serial killers, aliens, etc. The verisimilitude is used for different scopes, for example: marketing, education, increase or developing public fears and concerns, improve the public image of subjects, or to create a threat.
c) Teasing. This strategy is used for diminishing the opponent's figure, ideas or authority and makes a situation less complicated. In general, this is achieved showing funny pictures of the opponent or doing caricature of the victim.
d) Sandwich effect. This strategy uses the medium to show the good of someone and, in between, a weakness. This method is used when the people, who create the news, want to be accepted by the opponent but also leave doubts about the opponent’s figure in the audience mind. This strategy is used in particular by newspapers or magazine.
e) Use of experts. This method is used, for example, during talk show or during discussion on radio and, in particular, for political, social and business debates. It is a sly way of communication because involves the use of experts for influencing public opinion and both TV programs and presenters are not exposed. In brief, this method includes the selection of experts, which share the same opinion on specific topic and aligned to the program’s idea, and invites also a smaller group of experts for the contradictory. The larger group will put pressure on the smaller one during the discussion and this will end, for most of the time, with a victory of the larger group and meeting with the intent of the program.
f) Character assassination. An individual has the possibility to use derogatory adjectives to destroy the reputation and credibility of the opponent using exaggeration, false accusation and defamation and many other such as spreading rumors and misinformation.
g) Message Repetition. The continuous repetition of a message, through one or more medium, makes the audience believe to