Garth Rattray | Paradoxical desocialisation by social media – Part 1

Over the years, human beings have been extremely inventive and creative in discovering, inventing, or improving / developing things that are extremely useful to us as a race. Although we (collectively) bask in our scientific achievements, and lord ourselves over [lesser] animal species, the credit for most of our amazing advances goes to only a [relative] handful of people.

Sadly, many things that were discovered or invented for the convenience that they allow, or for their peaceful and/or healing properties, were and are still being (mis)used for destructive reasons and to harm others.

For example, the powerful compound known as gunpowder was developed by the Chinese Taoist alchemists in the 9th century during the Tang Dynasty. It was referred to as “huoyao” or “fire medicine” because it was intended for medicinal use (an elixir for extending life). However, in the 10th century, the Chinese began using it for military purposes – as incendiary projectiles (‘fire arrows’), ‘fire lances’, and bombs. We all know how that story goes.

Similarly, atomic energy (nuclear fission) was developed by German physicists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in 1938 out of curiosity for scientific research and experimentation only. But during World War II, nuclear research pivoted toward developing an atomic bomb before Nazi Germany or Japan could develop one. This new focus (under the Manhattan Project – 1942 to 1946) was led by the United States of America, with the participation of the United Kingdom and Canada. Enter the age of nuclear arms that can incinerate us all many times over.

And then we come to the matter at hand, another fantastic invention / innovation that is being exploited for its dark side … modern-day social media, which is made possible through the Internet. In the early 1960s, the conceptualisation of a global network began with J. C. R. Licklider. The first network was launched in 1969 by Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) of the United States’ Department of Defence.

According to online sources, pivotal to the development of the Internet (and by extension, social media) were Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn, who developed the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) in 1974; it was the foundation of modern internet communication. Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989, making it easy to access and share information over the Internet. Leonard Kleinrock developed packet-switching theory, enabling data transmission between computers. Lawrence Roberts led the development of ARPANET, the first operational packet-switching network, which was launched in 1969, connecting four university computer science departments.

The first email was sent by Ray Tomlinson in 1971. In 1983, TCP/IP was adopted as the standard protocol. And in 1990, the World Wide Web was made publicly available. The essential groundwork allowed the Internet to evolve into the powerful and useful tool that we have come to know, use, and depend heavily on today.

Several social media applications sprang up because of Internet connectivity. The term ‘social media’ came about because it describes an Internet platform used for interpersonal connectivity (interaction). An Internet platform is described as “a digital infrastructure or service that connects two or more user groups, enabling them to interact, share information, and conduct transactions or other activities online. They act as a digital meeting place and can take many forms such as social networks, e-commerce sites, marketplaces, and streaming services”.

The specificity of social media platforms exists because they “are the tools and channels that enable this communication. Users can share content like text, pictures, and videos, and the platforms serve as a modern way to consume, publish, and share news and other information”.

Examples of social media platforms include Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Threads, and Weibo – designed for connecting with friends, family, and other users. YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Pinterest – sites for sharing images and videos. WhatsApp, Messenger (from Meta), WeChat, Telegram, and Discord – for direct, private communication with social features. LinkedIn and Behance – based on business connections / career development. Reddit and Quora – for community-driven knowledge sharing. Tumblr, WordPress, Blogger, and Medium – designed to provide space to publish long-form content.

Social media has been around a lot longer than most people realise. It began in the early 1970s. At that time there were platforms like Talkomatic (1973). This platform allowed for communicating online. Bulletin Board (1978). Users could now share messages, files, updates, and text-based formats. Usenet (1980) facilitated people posting and replying to messages and newsgroups. In the 1990s, bona fide social networks were launched to allow users to create personal web pages, neighbourhoods, profiles, add friends, and to send messages between them.

Social media use is very common. Worldwide statistics for 2024 revealed that Facebook remained the top social media platform with 3.1 billion monthly active users (MAU), YouTube had 2.5 billion MAU while Instagram and WhatsApp both had two billion MAU.

The social media of choice in Jamaica is different from those in the United States of America. In the US, with its economic unlimited plans, SMS texting dominates when it comes to communication. In fact, although in the US 74.4 per cent of people access Facebook monthly, while only 29.4 per cent use WhatsApp, and the rest use a variety of the other platforms, texting outranks them all. However, in Jamaica, WhatsApp is extremely popular for instant messaging, general communication, and even political mobilisation. Over 90 per cent of smartphones in Jamaica have the app installed.

Next week: The concerning side effects of social media.

Garth Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice, and author of ‘The Long and Short of Thick and Thin’. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com