少年，社交媒体如何“动”了我们的生活

社交媒體已经渗透到人们生活的方方面面，以飞快的速度改变影响着我们的生活。通过本文，我们来看看社交媒体对最活跃的用户青少年产生了怎样的影响吧。

Social media is one of the fastest-growing industries in today&apos；s interconnected world， attracting more users every day. At the forefront of this movement are teens—a Pew Research Center1） study stated 92 percent of teens report going online daily， making them the most active social media participants of any demographic2）.

"For people entering college next year， social media will be ubiquitous3）—next year&apos；s freshman class will have largely been born in 1998，" said Paul Booth， associate4） professor of media and cinema studies at DePaul University. "They will not remember a world without YouTube， Facebook or Twitter ... They&apos；re certainly more &apos；plugged in5）&apos； than earlier generations because that&apos；s the world they grew up in."

As a result of this ubiquity， teens have seen a monumental shift in nearly all facets6） of adolescent life.

在今天这个互联的世界，社交媒体是发展最快的行业之一，每天都吸引着更多人成为其用户。走在这一发展最前沿的是青少年——皮尤研究中心的一份研究显示，92%的青少年反馈自己每天都会上网，这使得他们成为所有年龄段中最活跃的社交媒体使用者。

“对于明年即将进入大学的人来说，社交媒体将无处不在——明年的大一新生大多都会是1998年生人，”德保罗大学媒体及电影研究专业的副教授保罗·布思说，“他们不会记得一个没有YouTube、Facebook和Twitter的世界……比起之前的几代人，他们无疑更‘接电气，因为这就是他们成长的世界。”

这种无所不在的结果就是，青少年业已见证了其青少年生活几乎所有层面的巨大转变。

Changing Relationships

Lyons Township junior Elly Cooper said she thinks that social media often detracts7） from face-to-face communication.

"I think it definitely makes in-person relationships harder because of people&apos；s attention given to their phones or devices instead of their friends，" Cooper said.

Beyond diminishing friends&apos； time spent together， some think there&apos；s a greater possibility for things to get lost in translation over social media.

"You also lose a more personable8） experience because if half of your relationship is over social media， you don&apos；t really know how the other person is reacting， and it may not feel as intimate as other relationships，" St. Charles East junior Sienna Schulte said.

Though there may be a greater risk for disconnect in teen relationships over social media， some argue that bonds are more easily initiated9） and accessible through the online platforms.

With this accessibility， teens are able to generate relationships with anyone， regardless of location.

Tricky Parenting

M. J. Wallace is the mother of two teens， one of whom is a Cary-Grove junior. She said she thinks social media is beneficial in the way it keeps people connected.endprint

"Family out of town gets to see as they grow up （with） activities being posted like choir， plays and stuff，" Wallace said. "Family out of town used to have to miss performances and then never got to see it."

On the other hand， Wallace said she recognizes the danger in how much teens post on social media. Future employers or college admissions officers can search and find whatever kids put online. Despite this reality， she said she doesn&apos；t actively supervise her kids&apos； social media accounts but she does try to be aware of what&apos；s going on.

"I don&apos；t have time to monitor their social media things， but I am on Facebook so if I do see something that&apos；s a little inappropriate， I will give them a call to take it down，" she said.

Wanting to Be "Liked"

The rise of social media has granted more opportunities to meet new people and begin relationships， but it also has changed the way teens view themselves and compare each other.

This trend made news recently when 19-year-old Instagram star Essena O&apos；Neill announced that she was quitting social media because it made her miserable and obsessed with appearing perfect online.

Negative posts or comments also can do great damage to a teen&apos；s self-esteem. According to a Livescience Health study， about 23 percent of teens report being targeted in some means over social media.

In particular， anonymous apps such as Yik Yak function as incredibly large and easy outlets for cyberbullying and targeting. The app allows users within a five-mile radius10） to create and add to discussion threads about anything and everything. Cooper said that teens targeted anonymously on these sites can&apos；t help but feel embarrassed and hurt.

Opening New Doors

On the other hand， Lyons Township junior Armin Korsos takes advantage of the feedback he receives over social media. Korsos runs his own YouTube channel and uses the reactions and comments to his video—positive or negative—to help him improve his channel for the future. Through social media， his videos reach people across the world.

"Social media can help people show themselves and their talents to the world in a way that has never been possible before，" Korsos said.

Nonetheless， Korsos recognizes the distraction that social media has become.

"People begin to forget that social media isn&apos；t a necessity to live，" he said. "Yes， it helps people connect with their friends and stay updated on what&apos；s going on， but it&apos；s not all necessary."endprint

人际关系发生了变化

里昂镇高中二年级学生埃利·库珀说她认为社交媒体常常会有损于面对面交流。

“我认为这绝对使人与人之间的关系更难，因为人们总是把注意力放在电话或其他设备上，而不是放在他们的朋友身上。”库珀说。

除了使与友人相处的时间减少之外，有人还认为一些东西经过社交媒体的转译很有可能会丢失。

“你还会失去一种更为动人的体验，因为如果你一半的关系都是通过社交媒体维系，那你无法真正得知对方的反应，这样的关系可能就不会像其他关系那样觉得亲密，”圣查尔斯伊斯特高中二年级的学生西恩纳·舒尔特如是说。

虽然通过社交媒体维系的青少年之间的关系中断的风险更大，但也有人反驳说网络平台使得人与人之间的纽带更容易建立和得到。

既然这么容易获取人际纽带，青少年能够跟任何一个人产生人际关系，不论对方身在何处。

为人父母更加棘手

M·J·华莱士是两个青少年的妈妈，其中一个孩子是凯丽-格拉芙高中的三年级学生。她说她认为社交媒体在让人们保持联系这方面还是有益的。

“由于孩子们会发关于合唱、表演还有其他活动的帖子，外地的家人现在也可以看到他们成长过程中参与的各种活动，”华莱士说，“以前外地的家人常常不得不错过孩子的各种表演，然后就永远没有机会看到了。”

不过，另一方面，华莱士也说她意识到了青少年在社交媒体上发布那么多信息的危险性。未来的雇主或是大学招生官搜索一下就可以看到孩子们放在网上的所有东西。虽然如此，她还是说她并不会积极地监管孩子们的社交媒体账户，但会尽力了解孩子们的动态。

“我没有时间来盯着他们社交媒体上的东西，但是我自己也用Facebook，所以如果我看到他们发了不太妥当的东西，我会给他们打个电话让他们把东西撤掉。”她说。

渴求“点赞”

社交媒体的兴起给了人们更多机会去结识新的人，开始新的关系，但它同时也改变了青少年看待自己以及与同侪相比较的方式。

这样的风潮最近上了新闻：19岁的Instagram红人艾思娜·奥尼尔宣布她要退出社交媒体，因为社交媒体让她觉得很痛苦，使她一门心思在网络上表现得完美无缺。

负面的帖子或恶评也可以对青少年的自尊造成巨大的伤害。根据生命科学网一项健康方面的研究，大约23%的青少年自曝曾在网络媒体上以不同方式成为被攻击的目标。

特别是一些像Yik Yak一样的匿名应用软件，它们被用作了网络暴力和网络攻击的大型便捷发泄渠道。这款软件允许半径五英里以内的用户创建并参与关于任何事情的讨论。库珀说那些在这类网站上被匿名攻击的青少年都不由自主地觉得尴尬和受伤。

打开新世界的大门

另一方面，里昂镇的高三学生阿尔明·科尔索斯则会利用他从社交媒体上收到的反馈。科尔索斯运营他自己在YouTube上的视频频道，并利用大家对其视频的反应和评论——不论是正面的还是负面的——来帮助他将来完善自己的频道。通过社交媒体，他的视频可直达世界各地的人面前。

“社交媒体可以帮助人们以前所未有的方式向世界展示自己和自己的天赋。”科尔索斯说。

然而，科尔索斯也意识到了社交媒体引发的烦扰。

“人们开始忘记社交媒体并非生活所必需，”他说，“没错，社交媒体是有助于朋友之间的联系，让我们可以了解最新资讯，但并非所有的社交媒体都是有必要的。”

Social media has forever changed teens&apos； lives， making them more connected—and disconnected—than ever before. But for everyone labeling social networks a social disaster， professor Booth said it&apos；s just the latest change in technology. "And in 60 years， when a new form of communication technology comes out， people who are teens today may look at each other and think about how much better it was when people were texting and sending emojis back in 2016."

社交媒体已经永远地改变了青少年的生活，前所未有地将他们联结得更紧密——同时也让他们更为疏离。但对于所有認为社交网络是社交灾难的人来说，布斯教授认为这不过是科技的最新变化而已：“60年后，当一种新形式的通信技术出现时，那些今天还是青少年的人也许会互相看看彼此，回想人人都在互发短信和表情符号的2016年是多么美好。”

1. Pew Research Center： 皮尤研究中心，美国的一个独立性民调机构，对那些影响美国乃至世界的问题、态度与潮流提供信息资料，总部设于华盛顿特区。

2. demographic： 请参见P8注释11

3. ubiquitous [ju??b?kw?t?s] adj. 无所不在的，普遍存在的

4. associate [??s?????t] adj. 副的

5. plug in： （用插头） 与电源接通； （用导线） 和另一电器相接

6. facet [?f?s?t] n. 方面

7. detract [d??tr?kt] vi. 减损；贬低，常与from连用

8. personable [?p??s?n?bl] adj. 动人的；讨人喜欢的

9. initiate [??n??ie?t] vt. 开始，发起

10. radius [?re?di?s] n. 半径endprint