Problems – James Morrison

    Some problems that I would be interested in researching and writing an article about for my Unit 2 project would be the drug addiction in young adults and teenagers and social media and its effects on young adults. I would be interested in writing about these topics because both of them are very prevalent in today’s society. Drug addiction is something that many young adults and teenagers are dealing with in this country and social media negatively influences the minds of young adults in many ways. I believe both of these problems stem from the same source in some ways. Many young adults and teenagers use drugs and social media as an escape from their real life. By using drugs and social media they can momentarily forget about the problems that plague them in real life. Social media is a place that perpetuates negative stereotypes and ideologies that influence the thoughts of many impressionable people, typically young adults and teenagers. Because of these shared stereotypes some people can grow to despise themselves because they believe they’re not good enough. Additionally, the way drug use can be portrayed as “cool” on social media can influence teenagers to try them in order to fit in. These problems are important to address now because continuing to allow them to continue will only cause more problems and affect the next generation of teenagers growing up in the social media era. I believe if there was anybody that can change the unhealthy culture that social media creates it would be social media influencers. Social media influencers endorse, weather intentional or not, many of the negative stereotypes that affect teenagers. If more popular social media influencers spoke out against these negative stereotypes, then more people would be okay with being themselves unapologetically. Influencers can also speak out against the use of hard drugs as well which could help positively influence their younger audiences. These two problems are very important within my community because it hinders people from truly being themselves and hurts their chances of enjoying their life. If these problems can be reduced, people would spend their time doing productive things, that can help them achieve their goals and dreams. A more welcoming environment on social media can allow all people to truly be themselves without having to fear being ridiculed. A society with less drug use amongst the younger generations will allow them to focus on their futures instead of destroying it.