The growing
phenomenon of social media, such as Facebook, has done far more than to merely
entertain and connect various people. It can be observed that social media also
has a way of enlightening people about controversial current events and
inspiring scores of users to jump in and take a side on some of these issues
and concerns.
Groups on Facebook
and Twitter often serve as places for people who
have a common interest to chat with each other about their shared interests.
These groups can range anywhere from something mundane and satirical, to a
group involving a shared interest in a particular movie or TV show.
However, as
groundbreaking and ongoing events arise and circulate through social
media, groups have subsequently
arisen in response to these events. As a result, thousands or even millions of
people will join these groups and pledge their support to different sides of
these social issues.
A notable example
of how Facebook groups have pulled in support from large numbers of users is
with the growing support for the Stop
Kony 2012 campaign that
launched in March. With the release of the viral film, several Facebook
groups spawned as a result, with
each of them amassing thousands of new group members and “likes” from people
who support the attempts to bring war criminal, Joseph Kony, to justice.
Many people who
were previously unaware of similar phenomena are not only informed and
enlightened about them, but also inspired to take action and become involved.
Though many people believe that there has been growing apathy when it comes to
protesting social issues, these social media groups show that people may not be
as apathetic as was first thought.
Social media groups
are easy ways for people to get involved in pivotal current events without
having to physically risk their physical well-being in actual protests. They
have become popular motivators for a generation of people previously believed
to be apathetic in social phenomena.
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