Internet addiction even worries Silicon Valley | by Tracy McVeigh

The pros and cons of social media

Opgavebeskrivelse
The texts in section A focus on the pros and cons of social media.
Write a paper (700-1000 words) in which you answer the following questions. Answer the questions separately.
Give an outline of the different views on social media that are presented in the three texts.
How does Clive Thompson argue for his points in text 2? Give examples from the text.
Taking your starting point in one of the three texts, discuss advantages and disadvantages of social media.
Texts

- Tracy McVeigh, “Internet addiction even worries Silicon Valley”
- Clive Thompson, “Teenagers and social networking – it might actually be good for them”
- Vivek Wadhwa, “10 years after Facebook launched, social media is only beginning to shake up the world”

Indledning
Tracy McVeigh, who is a reporter for the British newspaper The Guardian, lays emphasis on the negative effects of extreme use of the Internet and social media.

She writes about experts and technology leaders who notice this increasing problem and the fact that Internet addiction is treated as a serious psychiatric problem abroad. Furthermore, the reporter mentions a conference on “finding balance in the digital age” which was held by prominent Internet developers.

Tracy McVeigh also brings in the perspective of another journalist, Tony Dokoupil, who discusses negative aspects of excessive use of the Internet, which include anxiousness, depression, and the risk of being stalked.

Finally, she brings doubt to the subject by referring to yet another journalist, Alexis Madrigal, who questions if Internet addiction is maybe part of a bigger problem.

Indholdsfortegnelse
A.
1.
2.
3.

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Uddrag
First of all, Clive Thompson has a natural ethos because he is a parent himself. This makes the journalist more reliable when making his claims and arguments.

There are different examples of the use of rebuttal but the most prominent one is definitely in the beginning of the text. Here, the reporter brings attention to the various opinions by novelists, comedians, and parents in general.

These people that he mentions all share the perspective that children’s social skills will worsen because of social media and excessive use of their cell phones. The reporter establishes trustworthiness because he respectfully addresses these opinions, despite the fact that he generally disagrees with these peoples’ predictions.