It seems that as the use of technology has increased, so has the drive for people to post, vlog and blog more and more about themselves. De Soto High School students are no exception to this phenomenon.

Social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and some may even say Youtube have grown substantially over the past five years, but the use for them and types of posts are ever-changing. One could even argue that videos and pictures have started to center much more around the things that people are doing in their own lives.

This concept seems to make sense for platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, where people use their profiles to express themselves, their ideas and the things that they are doing with their lives. However, the use of Youtube as well as just internet are shifting to have information of the same degree.

When Youtube started gaining momentum in the the early 2010s, it was filled with clips from the world’s favorite shows, funny videos and of course, music in forms of lyric videos and music videos. As of recently though, video blogs, or vlogs, have begun to take over the site.

These vidoes often feature young adults or teenagers documenting their life in a fashion that explains the routines they follow and basically how they live their life. Sometimes these vlogs will even just be video shots of the “Youtuber” going to random events or just hanging out with friends. Despite the seemingly boring description of these videos, they have gained massive popularity and continue to be produced in a rapid fashion.

Before these personal vlogs originated, people did a similar production of information about themselves through blogs, in which they share about their lives through writing over the internet. Vlogs could be considered the video version of the blog, as that is where it received its name.  

These blogs and vlogs are very popular to watch and even produce, and some DHS students have started doing so. However, the ethics of them may need to be questioned: what effect does watching these videos have on the viewer? Furthermore, is the producer simply putting their information out there because they believe that they could inspire others? Or do they do it more so that they can talk about themselves, show off the wonderful things they have in their life and hopefully gain fame?

Some blogs/vlogs focus specifically on “How To’s” or “DIY’s”, which explain how to do something useful, such as cooking or crafts, while others host clothing hauls and “a week in the life” of the blogger/vlogger. The latter in this instance seems to be straying away from creating helpful videos and more towards bragging-showing others how fun yet organized and motivated their lives are. Watching excessive amounts of videos such as these may not be the best idea for youth.

Media like this is appealing for many people to watch, as it showcases a life that they wish they could have and, in some ways, inspires them to work towards it. In spite of this, it can cause anxiety and the feeling that one is never doing enough. In combination with watching/viewing blogs/vlogs and attempting to cater one’s life around those that they see around them, there seems to be a growing sense of unease in a lot of young people, especially females. Bloggers/vloggers appear to be displaying a life of perfection, one that is only full of beauty, friends and money. Young viewers often look up to these people and feel the constant disappointment that their life cannot be as good as the Youtubers’ and bloggers’ that they see.

For the producers, there are negative effects to creating videos like these for them as well. When they produce this form of media they have created a false world for themselves, as they began to only feature their successes. This often leads them to feel as though the person they are in their videos is the person that they are in real life. They seem to take the persona that they put out for their fans and make it their identity, completely losing the reality of themselves.

No specific data on the damage of viewing blogs/vlogs frequently or creating them has come out yet, but I believe there is a real concern with watching or creating excessive amounts of them. While they may give inspiration to some, they are even more likely to lower one’s self-esteem and make them feel as though they are behind where they need to be. Additionally, bloggers and vloggers need to be careful that they do not get too caught up in the writing/filming about themselves to remember their true-self, not the one that they put out on the internet.