QLEOUS BLUMEI FADRIGON

BSED-GEN.SCIENCE III

Reflection Paper on the Documentary short film “The Social Dilemma”

The Most Important Point:

The documentary's main message is to be conscious of how you use the internet and
how it might affect us. It also emphasizes that while technology can be beneficial when
used correctly, it can also be harmful to society.
I agree that technology may be dangerous if used incorrectly, but I also recognize
that it can be beneficial when utilized correctly. Companies know what they're doing with
their technology, they're not doing anything to try and fix it, they know it’s dangerous.
Technology is purposely made addictive by showing us exactly what they think we want
to see. And let’s be honest, it works. At this point in evolution, it is out of their hands; they
have created something that they can no longer control.

Cyber-bullying:
In this documentary, cyberbullying was a major theme. They showed a scenario in
the movie where a young girl was receiving remarks on her social media account. The
most of the comments were nice, but she concentrated on the negative one. This applies to
nearly everyone who uses the internet. Social networking can be detrimental to one's
mental health. Some people are too concerned with other people's opinions, which can
lead to mental illness. They presented some facts on teen girls' self-harm and suicide rates
in the documentary. As you can see, after social media was introduced, the numbers of
case raised.

My Perspective:
In modern society, being prone to social media addiction is one of the rising
phenomena. Nowadays, people are always stuck to their phones, with their heads bowed
down, scrolling through various online platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube,
Twitter and others. This addiction is mainly attributed to the advancement of the digital
age where the Internet has become widespread in use, cheap, and easy to access as well as
its fast ability to load content. In the context of film and media, the phenomenon of
addiction to social media is articulately depicted in the story I’ve watch through Netflix’s
documentary “The Social Dilemma”.
The film emphasizes the difficulties that come with disconnecting from or staying
away from social media. Personal experience can be used to assess the obstacles and
difficulties associated with logging off social media accounts. To begin with, switching
out from a variety of internet sites was a commendable choice. It was an easy decision to
make at first because of this short documentary entitled "The Social Dilemma" served as a
wake-up call to take control of my internet activities. In terms of personal assessment,
social media had a bad impact on my life because it produced a habit of postponing tasks,
limited social interaction with family and friends, and I utilized it to cope with problems.
While social media has been linked to addiction and other undesirable
consequences, it has also provided me with a number of advantages. First and foremost,
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter have aided me in communicating with and developing
relationships with members of the online community from all over the world. Through this
type of contact and interaction, I've been able to learn about the various beliefs, cultures,
and conventions that people on social media accept. Second, social media is a massive
source of knowledge that covers a wide range of topics, including politics, business, the
economics, and health, among others. As a source of knowledge, I am kept informed and
up to speed on any current events. It's critical to think of social media as a forum for self-
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 expression. People can use social media, particularly Facebook, to create an online area
where they can discuss their favorite or desired topic. The "like" button allows users to
increase their self-esteem by uploading status updates, images, and videos about what's
going on in their lives. More crucially, by including information created by like-minded
people, social media can serve as an ideal personal universe for people who are unable to
integrate into society.

Solution to the problem:

"The Social Dilemma" suggests the following as a part of the solution, just as I
recognize I am addicted to social media. According to the video, the solution is to limit
users' online activity so that they spend as little time as possible on their phones and
computers. The first step is to change the privacy settings on each social media account to
limit the amount of data that data networks can access. This can be accomplished on
Facebook, for example, by blocking third-party program access. The other option is to
modify the notification settings on one's smartphone to avoid being diverted from
checking social media.

In Addition:
To sum it up, "The Social Dilemma" refers to the societal dangers of being addicted
to social media. This is an important documentary to watch, in my opinion. It
demonstrates how businesses intentionally make their products addictive in order to
monetize them. It's addictive because it only shows you what you want to see, resulting in
user monopolization. The film dives deeper into the issues of technological isolation. If we
don't address these issues, the objective of social media, which is to connect people, will
be defeated.
While it clearly demonstrates how social media is founded on a model that
encourages addiction, I feel that it also offers potential benefits for users. The stated
benefits of utilizing social media should not be stressed through self-reflection because
they are intended to facilitate the addictive model of social media platforms.

As quoted by Sophocles, “Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse.”
“Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse.” From the beginning of time, every
new technological advancement has brought with it a complex mix of positive and
negative repercussions as well as unintended consequences.

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