Morality in the age of social media

Good or bad? The writer believes that as the tectonic plates of moral evolution shift, we must scrutinise the role of social media in our lives and be mindful of how we utilise it for positive changes. — ANN

THE evolution of morality and ethics in the 21st century has taken a whole new direction because of the mass awareness and participation made possible by the ubiquity of social media.

Throughout history, there have been discoveries that have changed society in unimaginable ways. There are two important developments that shaped the history of moral evolution: First, written language revolutionised the communication of ideas over space and time; second, new modes of transport radically transformed social norms by bringing people into contact with new cultures. Both these epoch-making events contributed significantly in shaping and reshaping moral thinking across cultures. Yet these pale in comparison to how the Internet and social media is shaping our individual and social identities now.