Blog Post #3 - Alicia Max

 As argued by Nancy Baym in Personal Connections in the Digital Age, many people experience anxiety surrounding digital media. Through using the domestication of technology perspective of Baym's four theoretical perspectives on the causal relationship between technology and social order, we are able to identify anxieties surrounding social media in the article done by The Guardian. In the article "Facebook Aware of Instagram's Harmful Effect on Teenage Girls, Leak Reveals" by Damien Gayle, the negative impact of Instagram on teenage girls is strongly evident. This is shown through the quote "Teens blame Instagram for increases in the rate of anxiety and depression". Baym's perspective of the domestication of technology examines the social shaping of technology and society and how it influences our day to day lives. When applying Baym's perspective to this statement her sentiment of technology being integrated into our everyday lives is clear. While social media, which was intended to be enjoyable, has positive implications, it is clear that it is too heavily incorporated into our lives, as the mental health of teenagers is being negatively impacted. The relation of Instagram to a perfect storm within the article, provides further evidence of Baym's argument. Baym argues the danger of the internet being embedded in our everyday lives as well as that the internet consumes us. This is shown through Instagram being a "perfect storm" as it has both many positive and negative connotations in relation to it. Overall, as argued by Baym, the internet causes a large amount of anxiety due to the way that social media is constructed.