Social Media silence. Have you missed me?

After all, It's only been four days but it has seemed like a long Easter break. I must admit as I write this on Friday morning at 7:45 am it has felt much longer than four days. And it felt strange until the light bulb moment.

Over Easter, I deleted all social media channels off my phone. Since then I've felt as if I've not been productive (substitute the word 'busy') when in fact my week has been full on.

I have a funeral to film today so on Tuesday, the Funeral Director and I visited the church so I could consider where to place the cameras. I took some drone shots for bRoll whilst the weather was suitable knowing that it was forecast for rain today. It's raining now. I pre-edited that footage.

My speed editing console finally arrived so I've been learning how to use it on a Video Interview I completed recently at the South West Wedding Fair.

On Wednesday, I helped present a talk for the U3A in Wells and prepared an outline program of content (Inc. interview) for a re-branding exercise I'm undertaking for a client.

All in all productive and yet, something has been missing. The ongoing distractions of Social Media. And as with any de-tox, it has felt strange.

WHAT HAPPENED OVER EASTER?

So what happened over Easter to cause me to take the decision to dump social media off my phone? And is this something you would consider doing?

Then I recommend you watch the film "The Social Dilemma", screening on Netflix.

The Social Dilemma is a thought-provoking documentary that exposes the hidden dangers of social media platforms. It's more serious than I imagined.

Social media platforms are designed to keep us hooked. Features like endless scrolling, push notifications, and personalised content create an addictive experience that keeps us coming back for more.

My 10-year-old grandson has limited access to his games console but I'm not sure, as adults, we set any sort of example whilst we are glued to our screens.

Social media algorithms track our online activities to show us content that aligns with our interests. This can create echo chambers, where we only see information that confirms our beliefs.

Wasn't this self-evident during Brexit and lockdown when half the country was yelling at the other half (on social media) wondering why 'they can't see it'?  They don't see what we see on these channels. I don't watch TV so I can't comment on how they control the narrative but it's pretty clear they do.

We know that excessive social media use is linked to mental health issues, including increased rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide, particularly among teenagers and young adults. In fact, the documentary cites research showing that since the rise of social media platforms, there has been a significant increase in self-harm and suicide rates, especially for young girls.

Fake news and misinformation spread rapidly on social media, making it difficult, I'd say almost impossible to distinguish between fact and fiction. Elon Musk makes this point when he turns the BBC Reporter's questions back on himself.

I don't pretend my action of deleting social media apps from my phone is groundbreaking. I still have them on my laptop which I believe I can more easily control. We'll see!

Perhaps I should go further and go for a complete digital detox. After all, it's a brave new world. The question is, am I that brave?