Social Media Usage Tips During Election Season

In the past year, I made my return to social media after a nearly 5 year hiatus. As a millennial, I am well-versed in social media and its pros and cons. The 2016 presidential election and its aftermath was a bit of a turning point for me. All presidential elections have drama and the 2016 election was certainly not the first in the social media era.

However, the conversation on social media for that election was more gruesome in my eyes than in years past. And I don’t mean the conversation between candidates (although Trump and Clinton were quite gruesome). More so the conversation between friends and family became nasty.

This did not sit well with me. That election cycle eventually led me into taking a social media break. I wasn’t sure how long this break would last at the time but it ended up being nearly 5 years. I needed time away from the political conversation online. Interestingly, my political talk actually increased offline. But these talks generally weren't quite as nasty as they were online.

In 2022 I started my own website and podcast so I decided to get back on social media to help with promotion. There are many days I miss being completely off social media. For some of you being completely off social media might be the right thing to do. However, I assume most want to keep some semblance of a social media presence.

The 2024 presidential primary election is already underway. While the first official primary won’t be until January 2024, the recent Ron DeSantis announcement has led to a noticeable change in tone in the online discourse among conservatives. There has also been a notable shift between conservatives and liberals. As evidence of the vitriol among conservatives take the recent firing of Gavin Wax from the Babylon Bee. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions on who is right or wrong in this debate. However, conservative Twitter is very tense and combative right now.

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So what should you do about it? First off, go “touch grass.” Seriously. Being on your phone all day checking the latest tweets and political news is not healthy. This doesn’t mean you cannot engage at all, however, we are not made to be online all day. Go take a walk. Go do some summer gardening. Go play baseball with your kids. You absolutely need to be outside every day and away from the political scene.

Second, put limits on your usage. Most phones nowadays have a screen clock that tells you how much you’ve been on your phone. Find an appropriate limit and stick with it. Maybe you can find a time of the day you are done with your phone and physically put it away. Along with your usage, there might be particular sites or people online you need to block or mute. There is no shame in doing this. You have to start making social media work for you and not the other way around.

Last, engage in social media fasting. Recently, Wrong Speak’s own Adam Coleman and Audra Facinelli recently announced social media breaks. You may need a break from social media for a set amount of time. Everyone is going to have their own reasoning and length of time when going on a social media fast. Here are a few questions to ask yourself to help determine if you need a break.

“Am I endlessly scrolling through content I don’t even enjoy?” This was actually another factor that led me to take my long social media break. I caught myself scrolling through content I didn’t care about at all. Mindlessly being on social media for hours on end is not healthy in the slightest.

“Is this productive?” As I mentioned, social media is about production for my business most of the time. Social media is a great asset for my business. Not all healthy social media interaction is business minded though. Social media can be a productive way to stay engaged with friends and family and also to stay informed. However, even good content can lead to feeling stale and frustrated. If you are not feeling productive after time on social media it may be time for a break.

“How is my mental state?” There is quite a bit of research being done on the negative effects social media can have on your mood. If you are feeling stressed, anxious, or depressed it might be healthy for you to be off social media for a while. There is no shame in taking a break for a day or two in order to help address your mental state.

I want to stress that social media is not evil. It can certainly be used for evil means but I wish for all of the readers to use it for good. Be in control of your social media usage and not have it control you.