Criticize or celebrate a form (or all forms) of social media for its (their) effects on culture.

Assignment Description: Choose one of the following topics:
Criticize or celebrate a form (or all forms) of social media for its (their) effects on culture. Your thesis must be debatable, specific, and be able to be proven through research and logic. Also, remember that your thesis doesn’t have to be “black and white.” You can always qualify your thesis statement by explaining the conditions under which it is generally true, or conceding certain points to the opposing view—as long as your conclusion strongly leans more in one direction than the other.
Use these questions to help you brainstorm ideas for your thesis and essay. Is social media truly addictive, in a clinical sense? Does social media have an effect on our brains in the way we process information or our ability to stay focused? Are these effects harmful or beneficial? Does social media have an positive or negative effect on our personal relationships? Does social media have an effect on our communication skills? Does social media have a positive or negative effect on our personal identity? Can social media be an effective tool for social activists, or is it just creating a generation of “slacktivists” (see Evgeny Morozov, “From Slacktivism to Activism”).
Your essay must include ONE interview with either a fellow student or “expert,” in the area you wish to explore.
You must integrate paraphrases and quotes from the interview within the body of your essay. Do NOT put a question/answer formatted interview as one chunk in your essay).
You must use at least 1 (and up to 3) of the following sources posted on Moodle.

“I’m so Totally, Digitally Close to You” (Thompson, C.)
“From Slacktivism to Activism” (Morozov, E.)
“A Day Without Media” (International Center for Media and the Public Agenda)
“Fighting a Social Media Addiction” (Johnson, J.)
“Social Media Addiction: Engage Brain Before Believing” (Rutledge, P.)
In order to earn a C or above, your essay should include the following:
• At least two additional, reliable sources that you research on your own.
• At least one article from those mentioned above.
• At least one personal interview.
• Both paraphrases and quotes from the sources.
• An introduction that sets up your argument.
• Effectively organized paragraphs with strong topic sentences and transitions.
• Proper APA formatting.
• Proper APA in-text citations for all paraphrases and direct quotations from the article.
• A conclusion that does not merely restate your thesis but that leaves the reader with further “food for thought.”
• A references page in correct APA format (which does NOT count towards your page minimum).
Additional criteria:
• A thesis that puts forth a clear, debatable argument.
• Facts, statistics, and/or expert opinions that support your argument. You may include quotes when the language the writer uses either cannot be said any other way, or is so special you want to call attention to it. You should mostly summarize and paraphrase information from the researched articles you have found. Your essay should indicate that you have actually read and learned new information from your sources, not merely found a few things to quote.
• When you do quote, the quotes should be properly integrated (no drop quotes) and use APA style.
• Clear and concise writing, with proper vocabulary.
• You may use your own experiences and the experiences of others to support your ideas, but most of your support for your thesis should come from outside sources.

PLEASE REFER TO YOUR ASSIGNMENT CALENDAR FOR ALL DEADLINES RELATED TO THE ASSIGNMENTS BELOW. Also, see me if you cannot find a deadline on a syllabus or are confused about a deadline. You are responsible for completing each part of this assignment on time. Deadlines are final.
3 full pages