We live in a day and era where social media is the source of news for millions across the world. There are many ways that people access social media to see what is happening around the world, from watching news on their phones, to accessing news through some of social medias powerhouses including, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. But if we’re going to be honest here, a large percentage of the world doesn’t have access to news sources. Most people who can’t access social media, hear news from word of mouth or older versions of news outlets such as newspapers. Social media is so important not only for the growing new voting population, but for anyone interested in what is happening around the world. For students of Glacier peak high school social media has really impacted the way they find out about breaking news around the world. After asking around who uses what social media platform, I found that most students use Twitter or Snapchat to find out what is happening around the world.

“I usually use either Twitter or Snapchat. I use it because it’s easy to just access my phone and look to see what’s happening. Also, I can access the news really fast through social media,” Cailynne Owen said.

“For me, I usually use Instagram and Snapchat. On Snapchat I usually read and watch the magazine part of Snapchat where you can find out about news around the world,” Kristyn Capstick said.

Having access to social media in a timely matter, greatly impacts people’s decision to use social media over older forms of media like the newspaper or watching the news on tv or cable. Just because a large population of America uses social media through apps and websites, doesn’t mean that you have to follow along with what everyone else is doing. Watching the news on tv really gives you an insight onto other people’s opinions, which can help you truly narrow down what you believe in politically.