Social media fuelling new wave of activism, report claims

Video: We've challenged these people to give up social media for all of September.

By Joe Tidy, news correspondent

For the last few weeks, Sky News has been exploring the big issues around social media to coincide with the Royal Society for Public Health's Scroll Free September campaign.

But as thousands prepare to log back on to the big five apps - Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and YouTube - there are positive sides to the platforms.

New research shows that young people are not only using the apps to campaign on the issues that matter to them, they also believe that social media is vital for bringing about change.

From #metoo to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, there are no shortage of examples of movements online that have made real positive change in the real world.

The report, called Plugged-In, was commissioned by Facebook, which celebrated the findings as a sign of the positive power of its platform.

However, the researchers also raised concerns about issues that an over-reliance on social media can lead to.

For example, the risk of a so-called "activism gap'" increases - meaning that some voices that are not online can be drowned out or even disappear completely.

I'm 71 - quitting social media makes me feel so cut off

Facebook says it is working on ways to improve activism online, including helping to educate people who lack the digital literacy needed to succeed online.

In a blog post, Antigone Davis, the social network's global head of safety, wrote: "We want to play our part in helping those young people find a voice on Facebook and that's why earlier this year we announced the Facebook Community Leadership programme in London, a global initiative that invests in helping people build communities in the real world.

"As part of this, we've committed tens of millions of dollars to the program, including up to $10m (£7.6m) in grants that will go directly to people creating and leading these Facebook groups."

Image: The challenge is one example of the positive side of social media

The company also recently announced that more than $300m (£227m) had been raised in the first year of its Birthday Fundraisers feature.

If you add that to the incredible (and probably impossible to quantify) amount raised by individuals fundraising across all social media, it's clear to see just how powerful the platforms are