Generation Like

We live in a social media world. Almost all brands and products are tapping into social media. But who are they targeting? Who are the ones fanning the fire? The youth of today. We now have the first ever generation becoming teenagers that do not have any understanding of living life without social media. I am 24 and can remember time without social media. But now, it’s everywhere. I would encourage anyone to watch this documentary put out by PBS called Generation Like (PG rating) here: Generation Like

This documentary left me uncomfortable. I like social media and how it connects people and so forth, but as a Christian and with my identity in Christ, it opened my eyes to the growing trend in our youth today. Youth, and others, whole identity’s are found in social media. Depending on how many likes or shares or comments an individual receives on a photo, tweet, or video, this can change the mood, decisions, lifestyles, or beliefs of that individual or their “followers.” If you watch the documentary you will see how youth are becoming major important tools for brands and products. And the more and more social media moves along, the more and more youth are willing to do anything to become noticed, as you will see in the doc. Money, for them, is becoming second, as the currency of likes, shares, or comments continues to become more valuable.

I know this issue of social media is a “first world problem” but this is a serious issue as youth are finding their entire identity in social media. They are finding their identity in the world, which is far from Christ.