During the holy weekend, journalist Karen Davila took to social media to narrate her family’s traumatic experience in Siargao Island. Davila’s two sons booked surfing lessons for which the island is famous for. After the lessons, one of her sons, David, came back “bloodied with his rash guard ripped apart.”
What made matters worse was that David’s trainer suddenly disappeared after Karen directed her husband to buy antiseptic, cotton, and gauze for David’s injuries. With no first aid readily available from the hotel or nearby areas, the next option was to bring David to the nearest hospital—a 45-minute drive away. At the hospital, there were no tetanus vaccines available. Davila soon called on government officials to express her concerns having experienced Siargao first-handedly, which included surfing instructors not having professional certificates, the lack of lifeguards on the beach, and the lack of a nearby first aid clinic. Responding to Davila’s concerns, the mayor of Siargao explained that the lack of medical facilities and equipment is because they are a 5th class municipality. The island also has a shortage of doctors making them not ready for the surge of tourists during the Holy Week.
Davila did not need to make any special report or live feed on her home network to deliver this news. All it took was a lengthy Facebook post that was shared by millions just a few hours after posting.
Two days after the traumatic incident experienced by Davila and her family, the Department of Tourism (DOT), along with the local government of Siargao, dispatched rescue teams to attend to any medical emergencies and first aid requirements amid the remaining days of Holy Week. The DOT also released a statement on the same day promising to look into the surfing accident and agreed on the need to ensure better medical facilities to Siargao.
The concept of social media has inspired many celebrities to use their personal platform, raising awareness on things that matter to them. By sharing their personal experience on issues such as depression, mental health issues, eating disorders, or sexual harassment, these influential figures start conversations around topics that need attention. For example, many fans were surprised to find out that Lady Gaga was battling a lifelong struggle with depression and anxiety. However, she made it her mission to help young people facing similar problems such as bullying, abuse, and depression by launching her Born This Way Foundation to help empower youth and inspire bravery.
For example, hashtag movements such as #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, #DapatTama and #HeartOverHate were amplified online after some celebrities started to share their personal stories regarding these issues. These successful social movements were thrust into the public knowledge as it steeped its way into mainstream conversations. Since many individuals look up to celebrities, social movements garner more attention once they have been endorsed, or even just mentioned by a celebrity. The influence of social media figures are so impactful that they allow to set new standards by forcing change.
The most influential celebrities have millions of followers allowing them a huge fanbase reach. According to Pep.ph, the most followed celebrities in the Philippines include Anne Curtis, Liza Soberano, Vice Ganda, Manny Pacquiao, Kathryn Bernardo, Pia Wurtzbach, and Angel Locsin. Internationally, Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Taylor Swift and Vin Diesel rank the highest in terms of social media followers. These celebrities, along with media personalities, prominent individuals from different industries, and even social influencers use social media to mainly build their brands. Others, however, have used social media to influence positive change.
With the huge responsibility influential people such as Davila possess in terms of social media, many can still choose to inspire in a positive way. In fact, driving influence and change using social media should not be limited to prominent people. It should extend to all types of people, whether famous, influential or not. Media is no longer just a platform of news and entertainment but a platform for anyone to voice out their concerns. There is much power associated to every post, like and share. It’s time to use social media to ask questions, inspire positivity, and raise awareness to issues that need not only our attention but immediate action.