Social media is frequently not taken seriously as a way of spreading information, but in fact, there is very good reason to take social media seriously. There is no way of communicating information more efficient and widespread than social media simply for the reason that it reached the widest audience. Even the most trusted news sources cannot rival the following that a site like Facebook has. This is why discussions and information exchanges on addiction that take place within a social medium can be the most influential, and thus the most valuable.
The three vessels or versions of truth that academia has agreed upon are objective, subjective and socially negotiated truth. Social media communication strongly exemplifies the vessel of truth that is social negotiation. If someone can command and spread an opinion on a social media site like Facebook or Twitter, they will be leading a huge demographic in public opinion. On the other hand, people make it their business to counter arguments on social media sites, even if they are just playing devil’s advocate. This can result in a very objective examination of information on social media. This type of information spread is changing social stigmas on addiction by bringing light to the addict’s plight. There is a great deal of information about addiction that the general public is not aware of, and social media is promoting the spread of open-minded ideas on the matter.
The information exchanged through social media spreads rapidly and circulates widely. This makes it a very valuable platform for the spread of ideas. There are a great many notions of addiction that need to be put to rest, such as the idea of addiction being a mere character flaw or addiction being reduced to nothing but a self-control issue. By spreading the truth about addiction via social media, people can encounter fresh ideas and information sources that will educate them on the true nature of addiction.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM0egir_I0c