Opinion pieceWhen I joined the Internet world in 2000 websites for celebrities, personal websites, business websites, chat rooms and forums were the way to go. The business websites were in many cases a one or two page infomercial while celebrity websites especially fan sites for celebrities were the place to hang out. Most of them had forums where people talked about their celebrity of choice. Chat rooms on the other hand were where many people hanged out to chat to strangers about themselves. Oh, and don’t forget AOL instant messenger. Nothing of the above however had the same influence and effect on people as the popular Facebook, Twitter, Instsagram. There have been others before and after them but let’s focus on these three and how social media changed the Internet and turned it into a battleground.

Social media changed the Internet

Facebook exploded onto the Internet in 2005, followed by Twitter in 2006 and Instagram in 2010. More people got access to the Internet due to cellphones. People joined the social media sites with many of these people focused on social media for news and entertainment. Many of them have never seen or visited an ordinary website, a chatroom or forum. Social media became the Internet in many ways. Many don’t know anything about search engines, searching for a topic. No, social media is the way too many for the info they acquire even though it isn’t always reliable.

Social media a war zone

I too joined the social networks Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. At first I too enjoyed the live action on the social media sites until it became evident that there are people on these social media sites who are out there to spread hate, misinformation. The abuse on the social media sites are horrible. There are no amount of fair debate. People hide behind their screens while spewing hatred, also fake news. People get hyped up. There are too much noise on these sites.

Social media and me

I quit both Twitter and Instagram while only keeping my personal Facebook account which I use to keep up with old friends and colleagues. I do not regret my decision at all. YouTube I do not consider a social media site. It is useful to learn stuff like d.i.y. Projects and cooking shows. I also decided against using social media with my Let’s make tea as well as Amandaskrywer websites. A website also clean from advertisements. I like the old school style of websites instead of the social media noise.

The little gems

When you explore the Internet the old fashioned way through the search engines you find diamonds in the rough. Here are just a few.

• Tiny Buddha – Positive uplifting and inspiring stories.Alexandra Fransen – Another writer without social mediaLissa Explains – Created during the 90’s to teach people HTML – a website I frequently visited.