Why I Don't Use Social Media

Published by Stephen Milward in Science And Technology · Saturday 22 Aug 2026 · 6 minutes
Tags: Social, Media, Facebook, X, Bluesky, social, media, habits, online, privacy, digital, wellbeing, social, networking, platform, comparison, user, experience

Social Media. The name has become a normalised part of millions of lives. In every waiting room, bus trip, social situation, people are constantly fixed to their phones, unable to appreciate the situation they are in. They are precisely what the tech companies want - addicted.

I used to be on Facebook and X. I witnessed such hate and bullying that I decided to stop. I lost touch with some people via social media and have not re-establish that connection. But the dangers are vast, serious and life-threatening. They include

Mental illness
Bullying
Addiction
Isolation
Misinformation (lies)
Privacy

Is it worth it? Are people gaining by using Facebook and X, or losing? Do their companies and bosses care about the welfare of users, or are they most interested in profits? Are they interested in your privacy, or do they use your data to enrich themselves?

The UK government continues to use X. This is outrageous, given Musk's far-right attacks on UK politics and his disgusting Grok platform. They must leave all of Musk's platforms and regain some integrity. At least Sport England has suspended it's X account - well done to them (i).

I've tried Bluesky to see if it's a different experience. I met the same jerks there, who proved to me that I didn't need the crap that people write. I left Bluesky disappointed, but not surprised.

So, the social media platforms are full of pitfalls, dangers and grave concerns. If that's your scene, you're welcome to it. For me, there are too many risks, exploitations and lunatic platform owners. It's really not worth it.

End this addiction. Do it now. It's already too late for some.

14 January 2026: Musk claims he was unaware of Grok generating explicit images of minors (ii)

16 January 2026: X still allowing users to post sexualised images generated by Grok AI tool (iii)

25 March 2026: Meta and YouTube have been found liable for negligence by a Los Angeles court for deliberately designing addictive products that hooked a young user and led to her being harmed (iv). Please read this article and then ask yourself, why am I on Facebook or Instagram or any so-called social media? I use YouTube, but I'm a man aged in his 60s, not a teenager or young person/child. It's as clear as day that the tech companies only care about their profits. Make the decision to get off social media. What more needs to be proved?

28 May 2026: Jonathan Liew in the Guardian (v) has written an article about Musk and X. It's a really interesting read, with his views surrounding X, algorithms, the users and the malign nature of the whole X world.

03 June 2026: The Guardian (vi) disturbingly reports that Jess Asato, a Labour MP, is taking legal action against Musk's xAI because of fake sexualised Grok-generated images of her. If you use X, just ask yourself if that says something about you, your personality, your conduct, your morals. The UK government still uses this platform. It has to stop NOW!

15 June 2026: The Guardian (vii) reports on the reaction of social media firms to Starmer's announcement of a ban for under-16s in the UK. The response is clearly co-ordinated, designed to scare people by using safety as a reason to stop the ban. The notion that social media is a safe place for children is a nonsense. They want children to be addicted to their platforms for life. We must protect children from these companies. If we don't, society will pay a very heavy price.

You can see Ben Jennings on the UK’s social media ban for under-16s – cartoon here.

18 June 2026: The Guardian reports that the UK attorney general has told his department to stop using X (viii). I hope that all of government immediately stops using this platform.

18 August 2026: The Guardian reports that Meta (ix) are facing a trial brought by American states regarding addition claims and young people (x). Of course young people are addicted to social media. Just take a look in any venue, street, home, country and you'll see people in the same position, hunched over their phones, tapping away, oblivious to their surroundings. How is that happening? Is it a co-incidence that millions of people are doing the same thing, at the same time? Or is it by design?

21 August 2026: The Guardian reports that TikTok (xi) has agreed a $400m settlement in the US regarding children's privacy (xii). Age verification (xiii) and parental controls (xiv) are such serious issues in the online world.

22 August 2026: The Guardian reports on the early stages of the Meta's trial (xv). It's an interesting article, describing, according to a lawyer, how the business model can be described as 'hooks, holds, harvests, hides'. We'll see how this trial unfolds.

(i) The Guardian 13 January 2026: 'Sport England suspends X social media account and takes aim at Elon Musk'

(ii) The Guardian 14 January 2026: 'Musk claims he was unaware of Grok generating explicit images of minors'

(iii) The Guardian 16 January 2026: 'X still allowing users to post sexualised images generated by Grok AI tool'

(iv) The Guardian 25 March 2026: 'Meta and YouTube designed addictive products that harmed young people, jury finds'

(v) The Guardian 28 May 2026: 'If you’re still on Elon Musk’s X, ask yourself this: why?'

(vi) The Guardian 03 June 2026: 'Labour MP sues Elon Musk’s xAI company over fake sexualised images'

(vii) The Guardian 15 June 2026: 'Social media firms hit back as Starmer announces ban for under-16s in UK'

(viii) The Guardian 18 June 2026: 'UK attorney general tells department to stop using X amid disinformation concerns'

(ix) Wikipedia: Meta Platforms

(x) The Guardian 18 October 2026: US states take on Meta in pivotal trial over child social media addiction claims

(xi) Wikipedia: TikTok

(xii) The Guardian 21 August 2026: TikTok agrees to $400m settlement to resolve US children’s privacy litigation

(xiii) Wikipedia: Age verification

(xiv) Wikipedia: Parental controls

(xv) The Guardian 22 August 2026: Hook, hold, harvest and hide: Meta’s alleged strategy laid out in first week of landmark trial