Even Teens Are Bored of Social Media Now
The virtual world is supposed to be the future. But we’re already over it.
For years and years, teens have been told over and over again that we’re spending too much time on our phones. “Put your phone down and enjoy the moment!” “No phones at the dinner table.” “Stop Snapchatting your friends and do your homework.”
Adults’ dislike of teens’ constant phone use — particularly on social media — is so strong that there have even been memes created about it:
And yeah, we’ve been told over and over again about how harmful social media is: it may lead to stress and anxiety, it can lower self-esteem, it can trigger jealously and loneliness, it can lead to wasted time and negatively impact well-being. But have we listened? Well, not really.
A 2019 report by Common Sense Media found that teens use an average of just under seven and a half hours per day on their phones, not including time spent for school and homework, with a lot of that time going to social media apps/sites such as YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Reddit, etc.
But, in the last few months, as we’ve all been quarantining at home with our main source of connection to the outside world being phone and computer screens, we may have begun to realize that our beloved social media platforms have their shortcomings.
At the beginning of quarantine, social media was fun and exciting. We began to create fun challenges on Instagram, we were dancing to the Savage x Carole Baskin remix on TikTok, and we were even setting up a virtual Love is Blind through shared Google spreadsheets.
But now, all the days are blurring together, and social media just isn’t as fun when your Instagram is filled with picture after picture of being bored at home instead of the typical friends-doing-and-eating-cool-things, and your Twitter is always filled with bad news about the Coronavirus. Going on social media is no longer a way to see where people are vacationing or what cool music festival or coffee shop you want to try out, but rather a way to pass time. It seems we’ve exhausted all the fun from social media and all that’s left is digital mishmosh. Even on TikTok, usually known to be a place for creativity and humor, people are posting about growing tired of social media:
A generation that has grown up largely in the virtual world is now realizing that they miss the real one. Maybe this could end up being a good thing — maybe when we are all out of quarantine we will be inspired to form real-life connections with people, to appreciate the natural world, to explore cities and museums, to go to concerts and coffee shops and art shows.
Or maybe, in the coming weeks, we’ll stop using Instagram and Twitter and TikTok and start reading novels and picking up new hobbies.
Or maybe tech companies will be inspired to create virtual and social media experiences and platforms that can engage and connect us better than current ones do.
But for now, one thing is certain. The real world is way better than its virtual counterpart.
