Social media for social good

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor CHERYL CRUZ Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

The effects of social media to, or in, our lives can no longer be underestimated. Recent reports acknowledging that the Philippines is one of the top 15 blogging sites in the world underscores this phenomenon which has somehow affected the way people disseminate information or get them.

Thus, the recently concluded Visayas leg of “Mulat Pinoy: Social NetWorth Regional Youth Forums” held in Dumaguete brought to the forefront issues on population and development, reproductive health, and other pressing concerns which, if left unaddressed, can have an impact on people’s lives. While these are not new issues, the difference is that these concerns are being addressed and answered by a multitude of people, young and old, male and female, professionals and school dropouts, the employed and the unemployed – practically anyone who has something at stake, through the use of social media.

Majority who use social media, however, are those between the ages of 15 and 21. Recent studies as shared by Michael Josh Villanueva of Rappler.com revealed that Filipino Facebook users age 15-21 number 17.8 million. In the Philippines, Facebook users number 29.8 million, and 96 percent of Filipinos who are online are on Facebook. In Dumaguete alone, 68,000 young people aged 15-21 are Facebook users. On a bigger scale, Internet users today all over the world have reached 2.1 billion with 932 million users of Facebook alone worldwide.

Compare these with the fact that the Philippines is the number one most socially active country in the world today, with 43 percent of the total time Filipinos are online spent on social media. Thus, we hear of such terms as Smart Conversations or Collaborative Story-telling.

Times are not only exciting, but also changing especially for those in traditional media. While many still read newspapers today, the pattern of getting and sharing information of many people today has changed. We can now even make a difference and even “save the world” or “change the world,” as Rappler’s mantra proclaims.

The medium is the message, according to Canadian communication guru Marshall Mcluhan. Today, the medium is changing us, the consumers. Whether we embrace social media or stick to traditional media is up to each of us to find the best of both worlds. So long as we keep our audience interested and spur them to action, then media have succeeded.*