All of us use social media, whether it’s to see what friends are doing, share what we are doing, or see inside the lives of others. It is common amongst high school students to watch some form of content on social media. A report from the Pew Research Center says that 9 out of every 10 high schoolers use Youtube daily.

While the amount of people watching social media is high, everyone sees different content.

Apps like Youtube, Tiktok, and Instagram all customize viewers content. These apps use algorithms to give each user a unique experience. Some students may be interested in current events and news articles, while others are most interested in new updates in their favorite games, or live streams of an influencer’s daily activities.

A small survey of students at New Providence High School asked who their favorite creators are, what platforms they watch social media on, and what kind of content they watch.

Over 50% of the students interviewed said that Youtube was the social media they watch the most.

When asked who their favorite content creators were, students responded with all different answers. One student responded that their favorite creator was  a Ugandan mud wrestler, while another responded with famous entrepreneur Mark Zuckerberg. The differences between what those students see on social media is what makes social media so entertaining as well as so addicting.

While two students said that they watch gaming content, no two other students gave the same answer. One student said app development, while another said sports. On a platform like Youtube, where there are billions of videos, each person has a specialized for you page that is different from each other. Even the 2 students that mentioned gaming probably see diversely different videos, depending on what game they are following, and whether they’re watching gameplay, updates, or explanations.

Some of the biggest creators, like Mr. Beast and Dude Perfect, are seen by many people, but many of the less popular creators have smaller audiences that like their specific content. The specialization of social media lets creators grow their audiences with people that enjoy their content, which helps build strong communities across social media.

All in all social media’s wide variety of content and specialization creates a unique experience for every person that uses it.