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Throughout the advancement of technology, it has brought everyone closer than ever despite the physical distance in the world but not on the internet virtually. However, now it seems to push everyone divided among the group.

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This question is important because many people were getting closer to social media due to the pandemic and has had many side affects because of it. Many young adults have had physical and mental side affects from Social Media.

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Source 1: "Democracy Is Weakening Right in Front of Us" by Thomas B. Edsall

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Source 1: "Democracy Is Weakening Right in Front of Us" by Thomas B. Edsall

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Thomas B. Edsall summarizes evidence from multiple other sources and one source reveals that the freedom of internet must be paid off, by the cost of spreading “disinformation, hate speech, incitement, and foreign interference in elections” as well as attempt to “strengthen citizens’ political voice, increase the quality of democratic representation, or protest racial injustice” through hate speech, suppressing others, and challenging the core values of democracy.

Important Quote:
"A decade ago, the consensus was that the digital revolution would give effective voice to millions of previously unheard citizens. Now, in the aftermath of the Trump presidency, the consensus has shifted to anxiety that online behemoths like Twitter, Google, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook have created a crisis of knowledge — confounding what is true and what is untrue — eroding the foundations of democracy"

Citation: Opinion. The New York Times. Thomas B. Edsall, 2021

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/17/opinion/digital-revolution-democracy-fake-news.html

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Source 2: "Social Media, Political Polarization, and Political Disinformation: A Review of the Scientific Literature" by Joshua A. Tucker, Andrew Guess, Pablo Barberá, Cristian Vaccari, Alexandra Siegel, Sergey Sanovich, Denis Stukal, and Brendan Nyhan

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Source 2: "Social Media, Political Polarization, and Political Disinformation: A Review of the Scientific Literature" by Joshua A. Tucker, Andrew Guess, Pablo Barberá, Cristian Vaccari, Alexandra Siegel, Sergey Sanovich, Denis Stukal, and Brendan Nyhan

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The authors Cristian Vaccari, et. al. argue that fake news and political polarization can decrease the overall strength of the democracy and reveal that social media is driving polarization, disinformation in a triangle map, which proves that polarization and disinformation are related to each other. Social media was used as a tool to hasten this progress as well as being a part of the triangle map.

Important Quote:
"That is, does political polarization make people more vulnerable to disinformation, and, in turn, does the increased prevalence of disinformation lead to greater political polarization?"

Citation: Document. Hewlett Foundation. Joshua A. Tucker, Andrew Guess, Pablo Barberá, Cristian Vaccari, Alexandra Siegel, Sergey Sanovich, Denis Stukal, and Brendan Nyhan, March 2018

https://www.hewlett.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Social-Media-Political-Polarization-and-Political-Disinformation-Literature-Review.pdf

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"For Years, Social Media Has Excused World Leaders Who Push Lines" by Miriam Berger and Elizabeth Dwoskin 

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"For Years, Social Media Has Excused World Leaders Who Push Lines" by Miriam Berger and Elizabeth Dwoskin 

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In the article “For years, Social Media Has Excused World Leaders Who Push Line” by Berger, Miriam and Dwoskin, Elizabeth reveals that country leaders, such as the former President of the U.S., Donald Trump has used Facebook to invoke violence among the people in order to help answer the questions to the context of wider polarization between the people but wasn’t stopped by any social media until now due to the belief that the people have the right to hear the speech of the global leaders.

Important Quote:
Facebook and Twitter have long held that public officials should have greater latitude than everyone else due to the public's right to hear their views. In practice, this "newsworthiness exemption" means that the companies often give a pass to inflammatory posts by world leaders and other powerful people who may have broken rules, including those on hate speech.

Citation:  Newspapers. Washington Post. Berger, Miriam and Dwoskin, Elizabeth. Jan 19, 2021. Lexile Score: 1580L

https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2479128121?accountid=193134

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Source 1: "Young people and Dark side of social media" By Norri-Sederholm,T.,Riionen, R., Moilanen,P., & Huhtinen.

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Source 1: "Young people and Dark side of social media" By Norri-Sederholm,T.,Riionen, R., Moilanen,P., & Huhtinen.

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Norri-Sederholm,T.,Riionen, R., Moilanen,P., & Huhtinen. explains that social media has become a form of criminality, misuse, and hate speech. and has impacted young teens negatively and has led to lots of threats. Social media can affect a young teens way of thinking and behavior.  This can also expose young adults to harmful material posted online by other people.

important quote: "Consequently, young people, many of whom use social media on a daily basis, will have to find ways to survive in these circumstances, often without the help, knowledge, or experience of earlier generations"

citation: Norri-Sederholm, T., Riikonen, R., Moilanen, P., & Huhtinen, A. (2020). Young people and the dark side of social media: Possible threats to national security. Reading: Academic Conferences International Limited. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.34190/EWS.20.064

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Source 2: "Self-Isolating Means people Turn to Social media" By Street-Porter, Janet

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Source 2: "Self-Isolating Means people Turn to Social media" By Street-Porter, Janet

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This article summarizes how social media can affect people physical and mentally and cause harm to them and also talks about young adults have done self harm due to social media posts. it also explains how using social media everyday can affect our mental health and can increase feelings of depression and anxiety.

Important quote: “When it comes to social media, there are just times I turn off the world, you know. There are just sometimes you have to give yourself space to be quiet, which means you’ve got to set those phones down.”

Citation: Street-Porter, Janet. "Self-Isolating Means People Turn to Social Media.." The Independent (Daily Edition), 14 Mar 2020, pp. 34. SIRS Issues Researcher, https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2382863828?accountid=193134.

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Source 3: “If social media is making us Worse, Can We Make It Better?” By  Dunbar M.

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Source 3: “If social media is making us Worse, Can We Make It Better?” By  Dunbar M.

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This article demonstrates that social media is affecting a lot of young adults and their performance in school and reveals that social media can affect teens in many different ways and provides evidence on how teens are being addicted to social media/their phones. also explains that Social media is bad. It takes your worst parts-your vanity, your ignorance, your credulity- and makes them even worse. It weakens your ability to focus. It distracts you while you drive. It makes you hate people you should feel unity with and envy people you should find insufferable.

Important quote: " Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, makes you not only dependent on something outside yourself-something you cant control and that replaces your moral well-being as the center of your thinking-it also makes you more nervous, more panicky, more reflexive, more paranoid, and more distracted."

citations: Dunbar, M. (2019, Jan). If social media is making us worse, can we make it better? Humanist, Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/magazines/if-social-media-is-making-us-worse-can-we-make/docview/2263187389/se-2?accountid=193134

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I learned many things from my question about the side affects of Social media and how it can have negative side affects on young adults and how it can harm us and do bad for our mental health everyday and how Social media should be changed which can help many people since Social media has caused many problems in peoples everyday lives but overall This inquiry project was fairly easy the only hard part was finding our sources relating to our inquiry question. The process was easy it had many steps into the project but the steps were easy to follow and wasnt that hard to make.

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Source 4: "Social Media Is Blamed for Many Ills, but At Least It Gets Young People Talking About Mental Health"

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Source 4: "Social Media Is Blamed for Many Ills, but At Least It Gets Young People Talking About Mental Health"

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The article “Social Media Is Blamed for Many Ills, but At Least It Gets Young People Talking About Mental Health” by Libbert and Lauren describes that people who are mentally stressed are heard out by many Youtubers and influencers who share their mental pain publicly and help multiple people who are feeling the same way. This goes on until it becomes public therapy on social media, which reduces anxiety of most people.

Important Quote:
"What social media does – and George as a medi-influencer can do – is make mental health more a part of the daily conversation and address the issue in the gaps, when children are lying in bed, scrolling on their phones, feeling too depressed to get up or too isolated to envisage a future."

Citation: Newspapers. ProQuest. Libbert, Lauren. Telegraph.co.uk. Feb 3, 2021.

https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2498693544?accountid=193134

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This question has a great significance because in a way it gives us a wake-up call, and actually makes us think "Why do we trust news sources so easily?" Nowadays, we are so divided in terms of beliefs and opinions, literally causing us to believe in different news sources. And because of this, it has caused a rift between us and democracy.

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Social Media is best known as addictive websites and applications which are used to contact people from around the world and even used to display people's own lives. Aside from that, social media is also used to spread any news. Although, when it comes to politics, that is where false news is mostly shown. Therefore, how do we trust what we see?

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Source 1: "Censoring Fake News on Social Media Presents a Slippery Slope" By Vivian Roach

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Source 1: "Censoring Fake News on Social Media Presents a Slippery Slope" By Vivian Roach

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Vivian Roach writes that throughout the pandemic fake news was being spread all throughout social media. This wasn't anything new but because of how serious the pandemic was, all that was being exposed was mostly fake news about the Corona Virus. She goes on by explaining how websites and applications were going to "censor" any misinformation about the virus. Not only was this ineffective but caused many people to ask if they should trust any news on social media.

Important quote:
"In March, Facebook Newsroom tweeted a “Joint Industry Statement from Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter and YouTube,” that said they are “jointly combating fraud and misinformation about the virus, elevating authoritative content on our platforms.” They invited other companies to join them as well in this initiative. Social media platforms tagged censored content with similar notifications as, “this post goes against our community standards.” However, some users said they were getting this notification on posts that had no reason to be censored. The “infodemic” has made some platforms use automation to censor content quicker. Now, there are more posts being mistakenly censored with automation, which confuses the public on how to discern between real and fake."

Citation:
Roach, Vivian. "Censoring Fake News on Social Media Presents a Slippery Slope." University Wire, 02 Oct 2020. SIRS Issues Researcher, https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2461081365?accountid=193134.

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Source 1: “Ratings Reflect Growing Polarization” by Michael M. Grynbaum

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Source 1: “Ratings Reflect Growing Polarization” by Michael M. Grynbaum

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In the article, “Ratings Reflect Growing Polarization” by Michael M. Grynbaum argues, from its title that “rating reflects growing polarization.” It summarizes how we as a nation are divided by the news we watch. It reveals that people listen or watch news broadcasting stations that appeal more to their own political beliefs, causing this polarization between the people of the United States. This division between our beliefs how polarizes us and we believe in the news easily because what they talk about is based on what we believe and it “affirms our points of view."

Important Quotes:
“Fox News, whose prime time is a destination for conservatives, accounted for close to half -- 45 percent -- of the viewership of the Republican National Convention…” and “MSNBC, whose prime time is popular with liberals, accounted for about 30 percent of Democratic National Convention viewership…”

Citation:
Grynbaum, Michael M. "Ratings Reflect Growing Polarization" New York Times, 29 Aug 2020. SIRS Researcher, https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2448011121?accountid=193134

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Source 2: "New Study Shows Social Media Dumbing-Down News Consumers" By Grafton, Ken. Waterloo Region Record

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Source 2: "New Study Shows Social Media Dumbing-Down News Consumers" By Grafton, Ken. Waterloo Region Record

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Ken Grafton describes that study shows people who read news on social media are less knowledgeable about real news. Grafton also explains that people who have read news on social media and compared it to news heard on cable TV say there is a major difference between the two.

Important Quote:
"The study found that social media news consumers tend to pay less attention to news than those who rely on most other sources. As of early June 2020, just eight per cent of U.S. adults getting most of their political news from social media said they were following news about the election "very closely," compared with cable TV (37 per cent) and print (33 per cent). This difference is alarming for democracy."

Citation:
Grafton, Ken. "New Study shows Social Media Dumbing-Down News Consumers." Waterloo Region Record, 26 Jan 2021. SIRS Issues Researcher, https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2499195205?accountid=193134.

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Source 2: “ ‘A Challenging Time’ TV Anchor Holt says” by Bill Goodyknootz 

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Source 2: “ ‘A Challenging Time’ TV Anchor Holt says” by Bill Goodyknootz 

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“ ‘A Challenging Time’ TV Anchor Holt says” by Bill Goodyknootz. The article “ ‘A Challenging Time’ TV Anchor Holt says” by Bill Goodyknootz reveals how a political leader or anyone, in general, can help persuade you and what you believe. It reveals this in order to help answer my question on why news is so easily trusted for the common good of democracy. The article gives us a reference to Donald Trump and how he would influence his followers into believing what was considered ‘fake news’ and real news. What this demonstrates is that a person can influence what you believe in the media, whether true or not, based on your bias and opinions.

Important Quote:
“Trustworthy news sources are challenged by cries of ‘fake news’ whenever there's a story Trump or his base don't like, and it has had a trickle-down effect.”

Citation:
Goodykoontz, Bill. " 'A Challenging Time,' TV Anchor Holt Says" Arizona Republic, 06 Nov 2019. SIRS Researchers,
https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2324219886?accountid=193134

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In the article, “Public Opinion,” the author asserts that information is always passed by mouth or by internet to persuade readers information can be wrong or right either way. This is relevant to the inquiry question because the flow of information can flow either way which always results in the same thing, disinformation that creates controversial topics or wrong direction of thoughts.

Important Quote:

Mass media and social media can also affirm latent attitudes and “activate” them, prompting people to take action. Just before an election, for example, voters who earlier had only a mild preference for one party or candidate may be inspired by media coverage not only to take the trouble to vote but perhaps also to contribute money or to help a party organization in some other way.

Citation: Public Opinion. Britannica School. 2021

https://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/public-opinion/109460#258760.toc

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Source 3: “Why We Believe Fake News,” by Rebecca Heimbrock 

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Source 3: “Why We Believe Fake News,” by Rebecca Heimbrock 

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In the article, “Why We Believe Fake News,” by Rebecca Heimbrock proposes that fake news is easily trusted, especially due to it being more exposed. This article stays relevant to why people believe in the news so easily because although this article is talking about why fake news is so easily believed. When you really think about it, fake news is always based off on real news. And it offers you reasoning on why it’s easily trusted because when you are deeply devoted to your beliefs and opinions, it is easier for you to believe in something, especially when it’s supported by others that have the same beliefs. And the same could go with real news, because whether true or not, it is ultimately your decision to choose what you believe in.

Important Quote:
“If you belong to a group that has a certain belief, you're going to think that it's objective, that it's true, and that it's rational. When you hear the fake news, you're more likely to believe it if it comes from your group or supports your beliefs because it matches your reality."

Citation:
McClatchy Newspapers. "Why We Believe Fake News" McClatchy Newspapers, 22 Oct 2020. SIRS Discoverer, https://explore.proquest.com/sirsdiscoverer/document/2457393545?accountid=193134

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As an end result of my inquiry research, I was able to conclude why people believe in news sources so easily. And it has to do with your beliefs or/and opinions and how deeply devoted you are to them. All the articles explain how our beliefs affect what you believe in and it can also be persuaded by someone who has similar beliefs like you. Not to mention, that in the articles they find that many people watch news sources or media that affirm their views, causing a biased situation. But aside from this, this inquiry process was, all in all, easy. It was a little slow and it took time for me to summarize my sources, but really, the process was overall easy.

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Throughout the research of effects of social media in which polarization is the most direct result, it seems like this consequence takes over half of the social media cases that divide everyone in opinions and seen to happen most of the time. Moreover, a lot of people choose to respond harshly back to the topic of sorts by mainly blaming someone. To simply answer my question, I have been looking for the answer for; no, social media cannot help democracy thrive to destroy polarization because it is enlarging polarization itself despite that social media is merely a tool of transmission allowing faster communication and many people are using it the way it wasn't meant to be.