There are a multitude of positives and negatives related to social media today. After researching a bit, I came across Ellen Niemer's article, "Teenagers and Social Media". She describes how most teenagers, boys and girls, spend so much of their time "plugged in" and entertaining themselves while online. She then goes on to explain the benefits and negative effects of social media on teens. Some benefits include, connecting with people who have similar interests, communicating with friends, and branching out and trying new things. Unfortunately, the positives don't outweigh the negatives in this situation. The internet, especially on social media sites, is a major component of where bullying (cyberbullying), harassment, and sexting take place.

So many teens, including myself, spend hours at a time checking Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. I definitely agree with the author of the article when she says that communication is a key factor of these websites. I use it to communicate with friends I've made through programs similar to Summer Discovery, and it's a great way to keep in touch with them. But, I have also seen how harmful they can be. Bullying over Facebook happens way too frequently. And just recently, my younger sister created an Instagram account, which was later hacked by an adult male, who posted some very inappropriate pictures of himself. Kids should not be exposed to this kind of material at such a young age and in the media these days, it is dominant over the more appropriate and useful sites.            

http://www.alive.com/articles/view/23615/teenagers_and_social_media