Teenagers expressing their political opinions on social media has been a trending topic in today’s society.

As the political world becomes more divisive, social media has become a widespread platform to encourage political behaviors. Some examples are the voting stickers on Instagram stories to encourage others to vote or when “#blackouttuesday” became popular on social media when Black Lives Matter was the main topic in the news during the summer. 

Teenagers have also used social media as a way to encourage political behavior. Now, there are many teen-organized political groups based on their political parties. Some examples of these political groups are “thedemhypehouse” and “conservativehypehouse” on TikTok. 

In many ways, these political groups can be useful. Sophomore Keller Cox has his opinion on this. “…I think (political groups) is a great way to spread information…” “…I think finding certain talking points and blowing them up and spreading awareness, that is very important, and I think social media helps that…”

However, there are also some negatives to these political groups. “…But it’s also really, really easy to spread false statistics,” Cox said.

When asked about whether viewers should listen to these political groups, Cox said, “I think everyone should listen to both sides of the story; there are always two sides, and I think being educated on both sides of the topic is very important because you can find your own standpoint.” 

As viewers listen to these political groups, their perspective on politics may change. Sophomore Carson Ripley has his take on how political groups have affected their future perspective on politics: “I would say that is where a lot of people get their news and makes (viewers) believe in what (political groups) say.” 

Though these political groups have their ups and downs, Ripley says that having more of these political groups is a good thing. “I think it’s good if (political groups) are saying true things because that’s where people get (their) news, it’s good to stay informed,” said Ripley.

AP World History and World Geography teacher Anthony Dunn believes that teens sharing their opinion on politics in their own political group is a good thing. “I think activism and getting passionate and getting involved as early as possible is a good thing for kids and for teenagers. When you talk about the civil rights movement, that’s a huge reason why it became a big deal because kids got involved, so yeah, it is a good thing,” Dunn said. 

 Dunn agrees that teens being politically active is a good thing, he adds that teens influencing other teens is also a good thing. “…So I don’t think it’s a bad thing, I think as the person that’s doing the influencing, understanding that there are multiple views on things, but wanting your friends to be better and if you are passionate about it and you think this is important, then try to influence your friends.” 

Overall, Dunn had a powerful statement when asked about the viewers who have already been influenced by these political groups. Dunn said, “I think we can go a long way in this country if we started with empathy, and so we’ve all had life experiences, we’ve all been influenced by people. But if we can just start with sort of an open mind, and want to desire to learn from others and put yourself in their shoes, I think we can grow as a country.”

Getting influenced by these political groups are easily accessible by just clicking through your social media page and seeing teens voice their opinions about politics. Though one’s opinion can be influenced by others very easily, it is still very important to listen to both sides of the story.