Article Reflection No. 81 (12/24/2023)

Article: America Is Averting Its Eyes From Something Very, Very Wrong

Reflection:

In the article “America is Averting Its Eyes From Something Very, Very Wrong”, journalist Pamela Paul describes the disproportionate impact of social media on people from different ethnicities. Of teenagers 13 to 17 years old, Hispanic and  Black individuals use social media much more than White individuals, according to Paul. This disparity can potentially be attributed to multiple factors, such as the high phone usage that results from lacking access to other technologies like computers where notifications from social media apps tend to be less frequent, Paul writes.The columnist then proceeds with the article by emphasizing on how the findings further direct readers to a side effect from social media usage: its impact on other current disparities, such as the ethnic gaps in education (e.g. reading). 

Ethnic gaps is a new angle on teenagers’ social media usage that I have never encountered before, especially because a main focus has constantly been on mental health. This article provides new insight for a bigger picture of teenagers’ social media usage as it connects the topic to other ones that are also deemed significant and relevant to ethnic class. I think these connections—between social media to reading rates and education, for example—are what makes this article engaging to a wider range of readers, including those who do not feel social media usage is as relevant to themselves individually.