The definition of iconic is a very famous and well-known icon or widely known symbol. Social media is famous and can be considered a widely known symbol of popularity. Social media are websites and applications that allow users to create and share content or participate in social networks. Social media affects our lives immensely. Sometimes the effect is positive, sometimes negative. Where would we be today if social media hadn't been created? Would we be more or less sociable? Would we remember birthdays or events on our own? Would there be fewer car accidents? No one really knows the answers to these questions. Social media affects our lives, whether we use it personally or not. Social media began in 1969 with the creation of CompuServe. CompuServe was the first major provider of commercial Internet services to the public in the United States. Using a technology then known as dial-up, it dominated the industry throughout the 1980s and remained quite popular until the mid-1990s. Few people had the opportunity to experience the Internet in the 1960s. Only 20,000 computers were manufactured worldwide in 1965. In 1971, the first email was sent. It would open up a whole new world. Email has become very popular, as have online discussion forums. In 1985, America Online Service (AOL) opened. AOL was first known as Quantum Computer Services, offering an online service called Q-Link. Quantum launched its first instant messaging service in 1989. In the late 1980s and mid-1990s, personal computers became very common. People began to recognize and want computers. Today, nearly 66% of online consumers check their emails at least seventeen times a day. This includes at the office, at home, on the way home, on the way to work...... middle of paper.... ..realize things are getting out of control. Social media affects people all the time. Whether our children are bullied through social media or we are addicted to these websites, it affects us. Sooner or later, the use of social media and the Internet will consume our lives. We will lose jobs if we visit too many social media sites or spend too much time on them. We will lose relationships because of cheating through social media or dating sites. All these things that people are likely to ruin, but they continue to use them. Works Cited “The Brief History of Social Media” NP University of North Carolina at Pembroke. 2013. Internet. April 23, 2014. “Social Media Statistics” Statistic Brain. January 1, 2014. Statistical Brain Research Institute. Internet. April 21, 2014. “Cyberbullying Statistics” Bullying Statistics. 2004-2006. Internet. April 29 2014.