Unsocial Media: Breaking Free from the Shackles of Social Media

by Calvin Robbins

Want to explore the least talked about positive and negative effects of social media?Experts on psychology and sociology view social media as a double-edged sword. It certainly has improved our life in terms of how we can get information in a matter of seconds. On the other hand, it has become an agent for disinformation, reduced productivity, and unhealthy screen time habits.Like all swords, people must know how to wield social media to their advantage. The first step is knowing what entails its use–the good, the bad, and the ugly.Free yourself from the ball and chain of the Internet and social media with Calvin Robbins' Unsocial Media!Unsocial Media sheds light on the negative and positive impacts of social media, addictions, and privacy concerns. Get a nuanced grasp on how these platforms are intended to catch your attention, latching on to your life, and sucking you into a deep abyss of addictive behaviours.This book explores the science and logic behind social media platforms. It also covers these sites' effects on mental health, particularly its destructive effects on emotional well-being. Discover why and how smartphone addiction happens and how social media exacerbates this problem.Robbins also enlightens the readers on security and privacy concerns. Know how to recognise advertisements that blur the line between bespoke content and predatory surveillance. Our book also contains a relevant discussion on how the Internet and social media shape public opinion.In this book, you’ll ✅ Tips on how you can manage your screen time✅ Learn the red flags indicating phone fixation, internet abuse, and internet compulsion issues✅ Comprehensive yet easy-to-digest topics around social mediaTake charge of your digital freedom. Add Unsocial Breaking Free from the Shackles of Social Media to your basket TODAY!

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help

162 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 24, 2020

About the author

Calvin Robbins is the author of Unsocial Media and a seasoned product management professional with over 15+ years of experience in the tech industry.

Throughout his career, he has held various product management roles at companies like Oracle, Dell Technologies, Boomi, and now Camunda, where he serves as Senior Product Manager of Product Management.

His broad experience across multiple disciplines gives him a deep understanding of technology and its evolving trends.

Unsocial Media is his debut book, exploring the profound impact of technology on society.

Reviews

[Laurie MacQueen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for giving me a free copy of the book to review!

Antisocial media goes through the debate around social media’s ups and downs, as well as giving a few ideas on how to limit screen time as an individual and a parent.

On a whole, I found its tips for screen time helpful. Anything that ensures I’ll be able to put down my phone for a little and be fine is ok by me. Chapter 3, on privacy concerns, was my favorite section of the book. I never fail to find discussions of cyber security interesting, especially on a personal level.

The book as a whole reads to me as a guide to social media for those who didn’t grow up with it. That’s understandable and necessary, but for me, it means that I felt like I knew a lot of the basics already. It also made the frequency of the word “youngster” come off as a little patronizing. So if you’re my age, be aware of that going into the book.

I had a couple things that I wanted more of from the book. The first is sources: the studies talked about were interesting, and I just wanted a few more to flesh out some of the tips and suggestions the book has. The second is more from personal preference. I could see this book benefitting from a stronger authorial voice.

Overall, this book is a nice intro to the broader discussion surrounding social media, with an emphasis on staying safe and healthy while enjoying the web.

[Alicia Bayer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected to love this book since I really agree with the premise. It just felt like a college research paper though. It would have benefited from a good editor, not in correcting errors (none jumped out at me) but making the text a more interesting and engaging read. It also lacked references and I was a little put off by the frequent talk of "youngsters" regarding younger folks on social media. It gave the impression that the author was elderly, though he does not seem to be. All in all, I didn't really learn anything or enjoy the read, though others may find much more to take away from it. Two stars for me, which Goodreads defines as "it was okay."

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book via NetGalley.

[Ian Slatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched book, Unsocial Media provides a whole host of hints and advice to turn the tide on overuse of computers, tablets and mobiles. Chapters examine how we use technology for pleasure and for work, and offer useful tips for reducing the time we and our children spend on them and for using social media more positively. I’m glad I read this book.

[Traceys · Rating 3 out of 5]

We all know about social media and data gathering etc, reading about it makes it more real! This book gives you good tips on how to limit your time and info you share. I know lots of people who have deleted FB accounts lately, dont think I'm ready for that though! I do try to limit on my personal page and find I delete old posts more than post new ones lol

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This excellent book delves into the problems and the advantages of social media, making it especially useful for parents. It is well-known that many parents who work for SM companies won't let their children near SM - for good reason! Anxiety, depression and lack of self-esteem seem to be growing problems for even young adults who use SM a lot, but it is even worse for children and teenagers. Cyberbullying, texting, stalking, addiction - the bad effects are end less.

Calvin Robbins has several suggestions for parents on how to safeguard their children from these nasty problems, which appear to be rising existentially. These include limiting screen time and previewing all shows and games to check their suitability. Also, be mindful of what your youngsters are watching! It was much easier for parents when they only had unsuitable magazines or books to worry about!

SM can affect adults badly, as well. Distractions from work, fake news, fear of missing out - all these affect adults. Robbins provides excellent suggestions to limit your use of SM, and observe what you are doing. In the end, he seems to think that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Do you really want to provide these companies with your data?

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Zee Monodee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately read very much like a first draft which was a mind-dump of ideas that made it to paper without much through to organization or clarity/ease of reading. While there are good tidbits in here, it would benefit from a good editor re-organizing it all into a more cohesive and better-flowing narrative

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unique read

[Shama Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Makes a convincing argument that social media in its present form is a force for disharmony in our world.

[Henny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had already deleted my social platforms a few years ago but this book made me so proud that I did, I have since lent it to many people, all of whom are amazed at the way he outlines his points.

[Azezad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone should ready this book. If you won't delete your accounts, at least you have an understanding how you are being used and maybe that will make you change your online behavior

[Amold · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly interesting book & there are solid arguments for deleting your social media accounts

[Waidat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scary how accurate the topics are in this book. Enthralled from the minute i picked it up.
Well worth a read.

[John]

Great I won the giveaway, will start reading soon

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone not addicted to social media, I found this short book interesting and I hope it will help others. The points are made in an introduction, which might not be ideal, as then some people will feel no need to read the rest of the book. Negative consequences and possible problems of social media use for the individual user are the main focus. The positive sides also get a chapter. Suggestions for care in using accounts and phones are given.

The author's presentation is that of a university thesis with creditable references at the end. They seem to have used a straight comparison with alcohol addiction, suggesting that some people turn to social media when they are upset or exhausted. Concern for the effect on children is evident, with self-image and bullying, fear of missing out, fear of not looking as interesting as friends. I did not see any mention of gender issues, race issues, etc. although plenty of studies and university books have been written on these topics. Cambridge Analytica was mentioned but not explained. If you are going to mention a specific instance you should explain the circumstances. I would have expected to see a comparison with Gamergate, in which women and people of minority races were bullied in online gaming worlds.

I feel that a few personal interviews would help people relate to the content, especially younger people who may find non-fiction dry. Also, some clipart, graphs or photos would liven up the pages, especially if people are being asked to tear their eyes away from a screen with visuals. The main downside for me is that clearly the author's first language isn't English, and a translator or synonym program has been used. There is an example in every paragraph, so I'll just go with "the state fledgling of Nebraska." This is extremely difficult for me to read, because my mind keeps catching on the language and I have to work out what the original would be. I started to skip depth and just read for a sense of the content. I would recommend the author hire or swap services with an English speaker to correct their copy.

While telling us that advertisers are the main users of personal data, there is no mention of using ad blockers, just VPNs which still expose users to the ads; and while sites store data about a user shared by others, the book does not mention the court-enshrined right to be forgotten. It could also warn of paid trolls, such as the Russian troll farm reported by Peter Pomerantsev, and paid false content promoters, such as those from the oil industry who shout down people sharing facts about climate change.

Overall I am pleased that yet another warning about antisocial media has been published, and that some useful reminders such as reducing and gatekeeping screen time for kids, are provided. References p. 81 - 82 in my ARC. I read an ARC from Net Galley. This is an unbiased review.

[Anna]

Calvin Robbins, the author of Unsocial Media: Breaking Free from the Shackles of Social Media, is an IT professional.

The book walks us through the dilemmas of social networks, presenting us the cons and pros that follow our daily exchange on the internet. As much as our lives are made easier with technology and information are more accessible we also pay the price of that accessibility. Fake news, less spending time with your dear ones, being behind a device non stop is changing not only our habits, but also the way we live and enjoy.

In the book the author sheds light on social media algorithms, addictions, invasion of privacy and includes the topic of mental health as a response to enjoying social media .

I am not an expert, but I do enjoy knowing a little about the screen's mechanism since I indulged in them a few hours daily. With that being said I can say that for me this book felt too basic. I feel like it didn't provide in a way that was advertised or maybe it was me who was expecting too much.
I am sure someone, who doesn't know what is happening in the background, would benefitted from this. It might be that the book was written for an older generation than me (I am in my mid twenties), since there was a lot of mention of youngsters.


Thanks to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and Calvin Robbins for a free ARC.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise of this book, given that social media use is on the rise and it clearly has a huge impact on the emotional wellbeing of a great number of people. Unfortunately I just did not find the idea was executed very well; whilst there were some interesting bits of information, it read more like an essay or assignment than a book. There were some good tips here and there, but a large proportion was common sense. I would like to see this book presented in a format appropriate for the younger audience, seeing as they are the generation which seem to be most at risk of being negatively impacted by increasing social media use.

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read books like this one before, so I find them interesting and actually helpful to stop the addiction!

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

[LJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. I don’t know if it’s because I read an ARC or not, but this book is so terribly written that it is impossible to read.