Over the last decade, social media has taken a great deal in many people’s lives. From networking to communicating with friends and families, to share thoughts and photos, to simply knowing the latest trends, and to many other reasons we use it – yes, social media has gradually seeped into our lives.
Although the positive and negative effects of social media on society have long been debated, still the majority of the population use this tool for their own reasons.
As a widely used tool to display the freedom of expression, many social networking sites have been introduced to the public. Some became a big buzz, some eventually dwindled and a few withstood the test of time, trend, and society’s demand.
Among the biggest social networking sites, one name always stands out and is more than likely the singled-out representation of what social media means. It’s a very popular name – Facebook.
How Facebook Started
Many people know that Facebook was founded and owned by the illustrious Mark Zuckerberg and he has been an inspiration to many youths who aspire to succeed at a young age.
How did Facebook start? Mark Zuckerberg and his roommates, while he was attending Harvard University, developed a social networking site that was initially exclusive to Harvard students.
This happened in 2003 when Facebook was started to help students identify each other. The website expanded to other colleges in the area and eventually to many other universities in the United States and in Canada.
The Facebook social media launch date was on February 4, 2004, but was soon shut down by Harvard executives with Mark Z. facing charges of copyright infringements and other violations of privacy. This led to the expulsion of Mark Z. from Harvard. Soon after, the charges were dropped.
Facebook Today
Today, almost everyone you know will have a Facebook profile. Anyone above 13 years and with a valid email address can create a Facebook account. Some would even maintain two profiles.
From its simple identity profile site that is limited to the confines of Harvard, it has now an estimated 1.55 billion users all over the world.
Facebook is now used for many purposes – communication, sharing ideas, sharing photos, keeping in touch and searching for family members, job searches, advertising, online business, and many other features that this massive social network offers.
Now with a market value of $245 billion, this hails Facebook as the biggest social network site with its co-founder, Mark Z., as America’s richest entrepreneur under 40 years old. Because of the continuous improvement and addition to the social networking site, it is quite a possibility that the net worth will only be skyrocketing in the next years.
What Do I Think
Facebook has undergone many updates and changes since it was first introduced. What makes it easily likable is because it is user-friendly, it is used by many large companies and news networks, and almost everyone you know is connected to it.
This is why it’s really easy to click that log in button and browse Facebook for hours. This is what makes this social networking site great.