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Misuse of social media on the rise

Social media has become part and parcel of our daily life. In our country, the use of social
media is becoming prevalent in almost all sectors, with the young generation becoming more
and more social media savvy every day. Social media sites like Facebook, WhatsApp,
Instagram, etc. are being incorporated in trade and business. According to one survey of
2017, Dhaka held the second highest number of active Facebook users, worldwide.

Despite this increased statistic of users, there is a serious lack of proper awareness about the
correct use of social media.

Most of the people here misuse these social networking sites, and this has only been
worsening owing to the utter lack of monitoring and accountability. This has given rise to
countless cases of privacy breaches, online cyberbullying, stalking, and even sexual
predation. Young people have become more susceptible to depression, social media addiction
and loss of productivity.

Rule and regulations pertaining to social media use should be implemented and it should be
ensured that they are followed. Without appropriate surveillance, these networking sites are
being exploited to the point of ruining the lives of teenagers. If nothing is done to improve
this situation now, the negative consequences of it will be too grave to be resolved later.

Social Media and its impact on Bangladesh

Introduction

By the passes of time technology improved and invented many ways of communication.

Social media is the last addition of this race of invention. Social Media is an important way

of communication in developed world as well as in Bangladesh. Actually not only for

communication but also for many purposes social media is using now a days. It’s become a

part of daily life. Blog, Facebook, Twitter, Flicker all are social media.

Although all people of our country cant access to the internet, who access they use social

media usually. Social media is spreading rapidly in our country. All classes, all ages people

use it. That’s why there is huge impact of it in our society.

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Social Media effected our personal, social, and national life in different times. In 2013, its

impact was more than ever. Two important issues of last year such as ‘Shahbag Movement’

and ‘Attack On Ramu’s Buddhist’ was notable. This two was took place by one of the most

popular social media Facebook. So it also working as an Strategic Actor in our society.

Social Networking Media

Social networking is an act of engagement. Groups of people with common interests, or like-

minds, associate together on social networking sites and build relationships through

community.

Social networking websites role like an online community of internet consumers. Depending

on the website in question, many of these online community members share common

welfares in hobbies, religion, politics and alternative lifestyles. Once someone is granted

access to a social networking website he or she can begin to socialize. This socialization may

include reading the profile pages of other members and possibly even contacting them.

On the other hand, Social Media is a way to transmit, or share information with a broad

audience. Everyone has the opportunity to create and distribute. All you really need is an

internet connection and you're off to the races.

Social media is a web-based platform thoughts and activities where people share information.

Social media has overtaken pornography as the number one activity on the web. According to

Wikipedia, social media includes web-based and mobile technologies used to turn

communication into interactive dialogue. (Haq, Dr. Fahmidul; Social Media: The debate on

freedom and responsibility, Forum, The Daily Star; May, 2012)

History and Spread of Social Media In Bangladesh

During Cold War time USA was trying to invent a new communication technology by which

she could communicate with her troops and security experts who were outside of state,
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without using fax, telephone or telegraph. They invented internet at the cold war period.

Gradually European countries, Asian rich countries got the access of it. But Bangladesh get it

few years later of its invention.

The common people of Bangladesh got the opportunity to use Internet for the first time in

1996. Internet was launched in June,1996. After internet was launched, National poll results

were made available to the netizens of the web using World Wide Web. This was the first

ever usage event of its kind in Bangladesh. The effort was appreciated in many corners

specially among the Bangladeshis living abroad. (Hamidur,2009)

Gradually Bangladeshi people become introduced with different usages internet, though a

large number of people do not have access to internet till today. Internet users of Bangladesh

today, use social networking sites than any other applications. The single most important

social networking site that is used widely by the people of our country is Facebook. News

and information flow quickly through Facebook, sometimes which have remarkable impact

on the people of Bangladesh.

Facebook was launched in 2004, after few years it came to Bangladesh. In 2010, just six

years after its beginning, the number of Facebook users crossed 500 million. Now this

number is over 800 million. In Bangladesh 99,5560 of total number of people are involved

with internet and about 83%of them are involved with social media. There is a large and

active community who are involved with different Social Media.

Impact of Social Media In Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a country of low Internet perception although a big online community is

gradually developing. The online community here responds proactively to the socio-

economic and political issues. The online community that comprises 'Facebookians' and

bloggers regularly serves news and analyses contemporary issues. In that way, they perform.

The bloggers and Facebookians regularly criticize the government for their failures. Though
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they stay in a virtual world, they try to channel the issue in discursive form from virtual world

to real world and vice versa. Their attempt to uphold modern and progressive thoughts and

their move for democratizing the society for equal rights can be mentioned here.

Social Media is playing an significant role in the life of people in Bangladesh. Its’ like zero

sum game. Social Media is using for many purpose. Now a days, having a facebook id is

compulsory thing for the people of urban area, specially within in young community. Young

generation people use facebook as a daily opinion poll. Dawn to dusk even till up to sleep at

night they use it. Not only young people but also adult educated person use it for different

purposes. Rural people are not lack behind, they are participating in this race. Reason using

social media is vary from person to person. It is effecting our society and social life.

We can give a view in some issues which are largely control and happen by social media:

 Students of a university or college use facebook to get notified about his or her class

schedule, Either there will be class today or it cancelled or there is any extra class

which is announced by their class representative in a particular group. Sometimes

they collect their course material from that particular group of social media because

their course instructor uploaded that document there so that student can easily get it.

 Not only students teachers are also using social media to communicate with their

students easily and closely. It’s a very good way of inter communication. Its not

possible always to communicate physically with everyone but by using social media

its happening. Relation between teachers and students becoming closer then before.

 Social media made our society more small and relations between people became

deeper than before. In a social media everybody knows everything about each other if

he or she belongs to their friendlist. School, college, university friends, colleagues,

family members, relatives are remaining close and communicating by chatting or

liking.
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 Peoples are sharing their ideas in social media so it’s a platform for people to express

their own opinion and their followers or friends give feedback them by liking or

commenting or sharing.

 Business companies are advertising about their goods in social medias. As if it’s a

huge gather of people so they take this opportunity and try to give message about their

products. Within a short time much more people is knowing about their product. Even

if anyone interested he or she can pursues it by ordering there. Many small and large

business farms are choosing social media in our country for advertising.

 In any particular day such as Independence day, Victory day, Bengalee noborrsho, etc

many events are organized and its reach through people by creating event in Social

Media which alerts people about that day.

 Thus our society is small and people are inter connected with each other that’s why

sometimes rumor spreads very quickly and which create dissonance among people.

Sometimes this types of rumors become a cause of devastation as we face in 2013 in

several issues.

 Girls face harassments in social media. There is a group of mentally disorder young

boys who intentionally disturb unknown girls. Even known girls also. Those boys take

the pictures of girls and create fake account and do evil work with people. Even boys

or adult man sexually harasses girls.

 Many crimes are taking place by using social media. Cunning people are setting trap

and who are new in this virtual world fall there. Due to lack of having knowledge

about social media it happens. But sometimes it’s too much dangerous for individual

or a group of people.

 Videos or audios recorded by secret camera or recorder are often leaked in social

medias. It’s a great problem. To take revenge enemy use it and it spread more quickly

than any other ways to good number of people.

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Two Issues of Bangladesh which are largely Influenced By Social Media

 Shahbag Movement Generated by Social Media

Shahbag Movement, 2013 was an outcome of hate against the War Criminals. It was

happened by taking inspiration from the social media, Shahbag became movement

demanding the capital punishment for 1971 war criminals. By the passes of time Shahbag

movement has turned into a strict demandand that was death penalty for all those who

committed war crimes.

The Movement was started from a single Facebook event. "Protest Against the Ruling Made

for Quader Mollah". Bloggers and Online Activists Network (BOAN) created this event.

Their aim was to protest against the judgment. Facebook was continued to play a major role

in the protest as users of Facebook spread their message through video, photos and words.

Bangladesh’s bloggers and online activists’ network originated the call for resistance. News

of the protest was spread very fastly with the help of online media,. At its peak, the event

drew an estimated 100,000 people — students, professionals, musicians, writers—united, for

the very first time in years, under the banner of Shadharon Jonogon (ordinary people). In less

than a week, Bangladeshis held smaller protests in cities as far away as London and New

York. Protestors published thousands of pictures online, in blogs, on Facebook, Twitter, and

online magazines.

A new website had been constructed for the issue and @ShahbagSquare has become a major

Twitter feed for updates of Shahbag. The protest has also been carried out to other nations

which has been captured by Flickr. Many of the Bangladeshi blog aggregates have erupted as

well, protesting for the death sentence of war criminals including Sachalayatan, Amarblog

and Somewhereinblog. The location of the protest has also been renamed to "Projonmo

Chattor" after the protests had started. Without meeting their demands, the protesters said that
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they will not move. These demands includes: capital punishment for Quader Mullah and all

war criminals, ban on Jamaat and boycott on all Jamaat institutions. Kader Molla death was

demanded.

Ramu Attack : A facebook post and devastation of a minority group (Buddhists)

The Internet and social media play a central role in spreading religious and non-religious

extremism globally. Both tools can also be used to cool down tensions and to develop peace

among religious, ethnic and national groups. Individual people can make a difference by

launching large social media campaigns.

It started Ramu but actually – in Facebook. Uttam Kumar Barua is an user of Facebook. He

was tagged with an image and a link was shares in his wall. The link insults the holy book of

Islam – The Quran. Uttam said he does not know anything about it. It came from another

Facebook user. He was accused allowing for the link; he is not a human, a Buddhist. So he is

to be responsible for this violation. It’s too much weird

On 29 September, 2012, at mid night some religious extremists attacked Buddhist temples

and houses in Ramu of the Cox's Bazar District. Seven Buddhist temples and about 30

households and shops were devastated by them. Hundreds of houses and shops were looted.

Subsequently on the following day Buddhist and Hindu temples in Patia and Ukhia were also

attacked.

Picture of Attack in Buddhist Temple in Ramu, Coxs’Bazar

In recent times the indigenous people from Chittagong Hill Tracts have been subjected to

attacks. But the incident of Ramu is different than those. Many are pointing fingers towards

the Islamists party Jamaat-e-Islami as the main troublemaker.

Posts like these are being put up on the profile walls of Bangladeshi Facebook users. Many

from the majority Muslim community are ashamed because they have not been able to defend
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communal harmony. Some are seeking apologies. Some have taken to the streets in protest of

the recent attacks against Buddhist temples and households..

A few of those who have come forward for protests have received threats from

fundamentalist groups.

From the starting to protesting everywhere Social Media was the Strategic Actor. So its

indescribable to describe how social media is affecting in our national and personal life and

its becoming day to day more sensitive place.

Conclusion

There are so many good impacts of social media in Bangladesh but at the same time there

are a good number of negative impacts are also seen.

Technology turned the globe into a village and in 21 st century social media turned it into

a community. Having access to social media is a blessing for us because till now many

countries where people can’t access on it.

As we can access and get the opportunity to build a better relationship among the people,

we should utilize it. People should not use it in evil works.