Author: maggieliu667

Social Media: Spread like Wildfire

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Social Media: Spread like Wildfire

Over the past decade, social media has transformed the way people consume news, share opinions and engage with the world. Platforms like Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram have not only made it easier for the world to stay connected, but they’ve also turned into primary news sources for many people, especially teens and young adults. However, in addition to its advancements and ease of use, experts have said it has turned into a strong tool for spreading false information.

“It’s not that people are lazy or don’t want to know the truth,” Ceylan, a postdoctoral at Yale SOM, says. “The platforms’ reward systems are wrong.”

Algorithms are at the core of this problem. Social media companies boost user engagement to drive their profits to earn more money. Their recommendation algorithms often favor sensational or controversial content, regardless of its accuracy, as it keeps users engaged. This approach has resulted in notable consequences in the real world. In 81 countries like Brazil, India, and Myanmar, social media misinformation has been linked to violent unrest and targeted attacks.

“One of the ways that we know that increases dopamine in the brain are extreme feelings,” Joe Dennis, a professor at Piedmont University and a former journalist, says. “So extreme feelings of anger is one of the ways that people keep engaged on platforms.”

As artificial intelligence evolve, the challenge of pulling the truth from online is only getting harder. AI technologies enable individuals to generate images and news that can be difficult to tell apart from factual information. People with large followings with spiteful motives can rapidly produce and spread propaganda across social media platforms. Videos can be altered with realism to make people appear to say or do things they never did. Truth and fiction are even harder to differentiate real and fake.

“Even just regular people who don’t use AI just to tell stories and use pictures of people who aren’t even part of the story to describe it,” Vayda, a rising sophomore at Loganville High School, says. “Most people scrolling will believe it without Googling it.” 

On social media, bots and fake accounts play a massive role in the spread of misinformation, often mimicking users to amplify their lies across the world. Bots and fake accounts often pose as regular people, sharing false stories of made-up “facts” to stir up arguments.

“They’ll be like, I’ve read about that and blah, blah, blah. And then you go there and blah, blah, blah is not even a website you know?” Saybel, a rising freshman at Academy for Classical education, says. “It’s like you read these and then you think they’re actual people commenting and being smart, but it’s false information.”

Bots and fake accounts spread information and they also help boost analytics by interacting with posts. When bots flood a post with likes, shares or comments; even if the content isn’t true, it gets pushed into more people’s feeds. The result is that false or misleading posts get more attention, while real information can get buried. It’s not just what the bots say, it’s how they help spread and amplify the lies.

“They’ll comment over posts and they’ll increase the engagement on those posts. And so that’s what pushes it into more people’s algorithms,” Alli, a rising sophomore at Academy for Classical Education, says. “So, even though the bots and themselves don’t seem to be doing anything, they’re pushing out that misinformation.” 

Misinformation can spread like wildfire. The truth is still out there, you just have to look a little harder to find it.

Opinion Story

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I’m not a politician or a policy expert; however, I’m someone who believes that no one in this country should have to suffer or die because they can’t afford to see a doctor. It’s simple: healthcare should be a universal right in the United States.

I’ve watched people I care about delay treatment because they didn’t have insurance. I’ve seen people on the news refuse medication, avoid emergency rooms, and live with chronic pain, all because the cost of care was too high. These are not rare experiences; they are everyday realities for millions of Americans. A 2022 survey found that 22% of Americans have delayed seeking healthcare due to the associated costs.

Other countries, who have fewer resources, have figured this out. Universal healthcare systems across Europe, Canada and beyond don’t bankrupt their citizens for getting sick. They don’t link health coverage to employment. They treat healthcare as a public good, a human right, not a profit machine. Their people are healthier while the citizens of The United States deteriorate. They worry less about whether they can afford to get the help they need.

Opponents often say it would cost too much, but we already spend more than any other developed country on healthcare—by far—and get worse outcomes. The real cost is in the state of affairs: people avoiding doctors, diseases going untreated, lives cut short. We pay for this every day with our money and with our humanity.

I understand change isn’t easy, but it’s frustrating to hear that universal healthcare is unrealistic. What’s unrealistic is continuing down this path, where health is treated like a luxury and insurance companies dictate care.

Health is a human right, and whether one gets treatment shouldn’t be determined by how much money they have. More importantly, care should be determined by doctors who are invested in the health of their patients, not insurance companies whose sole purpose is to make money.

Joe Dennis

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Joe Dennis, a journalist and educator, and is also known for his fedora. The hat became his signature during his Ph.D. studies in New York when a friend suggested he try it on.

“You actually look good in a fedora,” and he trusted her judgement.

Since then, the fedora has been a constant companion, with Dennis owning six other variations, his favorite being the black one purchased at House of Blues, matching a fedora of the 1980s movies he cherishes.

Joe Dennis’ journey began on the south side of Chicago, where he was raised in a Catholic family and went to a Catholic school. Despite the challenges of growing up in a segregated city, he developed a deep appreciation for the importance of understanding different perspectives. Growing up, Dennis experienced the challenges of being part of a minority in a segregated city. He faced discrimination, which he later reflected upon in his writing. His experiences shaped his understanding of identity and the importance of representation in media.

“Chicago, everyone says it’s a diverse city which it is when you look at it on a map and you look at the population and it’s so diverse,” he says.

While no senior family members pursued journalism, Dennis’s influence has sparked an interest in the field among his children. His oldest son dabbled in journalism, earning an award before transitioning to computer science. More notably, his 14-year-old son has developed a “weird fascination” with journalism, inspired by hearing his father’s experiences and stories.

In a gesture of bonding, Dennis and his son got matching tattoos of the Filipino flag on his son’s 21st birthday.

“Let me tell you, that was maybe one of the most meaningful things any of my kids ever said because it was totally unexpected,” he says.

One of Dennis’s most inspiring journalistic experiences was covering a local judge in Monroe, Georgia, who was awaiting a liver transplant. Over several months, Dennis reported on the judge’s journey, culminating in the judge’s passing before receiving the transplant. This story deeply impacted Dennis, leading him to become an organ donor himself, underscoring the profound effect journalism can have on personal choices and societal awareness.

“I’ll never forget the day he died, and I actually went and became an organ donor myself,” he says.

Maggie Liu

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Hello, I’m Maggie and I’m a rising sophomore at Northview High School. I’m 15 and I’m going to turn 16 in November. My favorite subjects are math and literature. My favorite artist is The Weeknd and I wish I was going to his concert this August, but my parents said no, unfortunately. I’m a real big extrovert and I love talking. Talking may as well be one of my personal hobbies, but one of my hobbies has sparked who I am now.

Growing up, I’ve always switch hobbies whether it was from ice skating, swimming, drawing, etc; however, I’ve never been able to say that they were my personal interests. I often went exploring different passions since I wanted to find my own, even if it was tedious, or complicated. I was so hesitant with each experience that I would quit, but then realize I made a mistake. This constant cycle left me feeling exhausted and discouraged, making it hard to start anything new without the nagging fear that I’d give up shortly after.

But over time, I began to realize that my fear of quitting was holding me back to do more things I wanted to do. It made me realize my love for reading and writing. When I was younger, I absolutely despised reading books and writing essays for classes. I loathed it with a passion. You would have never caught me even holding up a book in my free time. Now, reading is one of my favorite past times. I read when I wake up, in my break time, and when I’m about to go into deep slumber. Even in moments of exhaustion, I make an effort to read.

I get so attached to the stories inside those books, it makes me want to be in the physical book. It compels me to start writing new stories on Google Docs. Even if it’s not the best plot or writing, it tells a story. It lets me release the fumes that reaches into my head.

Besides reading and writing, I love being able to communicate with others, whether it’s about their feelings or just random side chats. Talking with people has always been something that releases my emotions and I honestly couldn’t be more grateful.