To ask older Mumsnetters if you think the internet has improved or denigrated society?

[Appalonia]

I'm 59 so grew up without the internet. Although I accept it's created a lot of good things, I can't help but think that's it's also created huge issues in the world that just wouldn't have existed without it. For example:

Violent, misogynistic porn that's available to children
Incel culture
The death of the high street
No one talking on the phone anymore, and young people refusing to answer the phone
Revenge porn
Musicians finding it v hard to make a living due to streaming
Anxiety in young people
Trans ideology and young pp being groomed online
The lack of customer service from companies
Loneliness and isolation
The polarisation of political views
Fake news

And so much more. Obviously we can't go back, but sometimes I think we had no idea what would happen when we unleashed this onto the world... Curious to know what other pp think...?

Definitely worse now, It was great probably about 15- 20 years ago as you didn't have to do everything on there, you could shop and find out stuff, we had iPods for music, iPhones and similar were just coming out. There was a bit of social media. Apps weren't so much a thing. I'm 66, DS is 31 and had a Samsung phone when he must have been about 16 which could get a bit of internet but not much, before that he had a brick phone

I am 68 and I couldn't imagine living without the internet for the reasons listed above.Yes there are downsides but I firmly believe that the benefits outweigh those.

I'm sure in the old days before internet it wouldn't have taken British Gas nearly a year to send me a correct bill and get readings from my smart meter, it's took a couple of phone calls and half a dozen bot chats, I was underpaying and undercharged so not that serious but I can't imagine the stress if you were being overcharged and it just seemed to be computer says no all the while

I'm older than you OP. I like it for the ease of booking things, access to general and specialist knowledge, ordering shopping online etc. But I hate the way some parents allow children and young teenagers access to social media, chat apps and the internet in general without checking on what they are doing and who they are talking to. Recently a school child murdered another child after accessing horrific content on the dark web. The parents had no idea what she was doing on her phone because they didn't check. I use a lot of social media platforms but I'd have no problem with it all being shut down and I think society would be better for it.

Something that does worry me is so many places not accepting cash anymore and the possibility of a social credit system. You may think, oh this won't affect me, and it's only outliers like Nigel Farage and Andrew Tate that will be affected by this, but there's been women like Kellie Jay Keen, who have been outspoken in talking about the very real threat to women's rights that transgender ideology poses, who have been banned from many places. This could happen to any of us who have views that are deemed ' unacceptable '...

40 here. It's a bit mixed.
It's good in that it can be informative and supportive. Negative in that it creates an unhealthy comparison making you feel everyone has it better. Also the nastiness and living up to the Jones type competitiveness.
It's sad when people can't look up from their phones. It annoys me when I am with someone and they are constantly texting or disengaged as too bothered with what's going on in their phones. Some people take Facebook very seriously and see it as real life which isn't healthy either.

Businesses deciding not to accept cash any more is not because of the Internet. Credit cards predate public access to the Internet by a couple of decades.

50:50 here too and I'm 59. Wouldn't be without it but boy there are some awful downsides

I'm in my 40s and feel grateful I grew up without the Internet.

It has caused so many mental health issues in our youth.

Take me back to the 1980s and 1990s please.

Also, a while ago, I saw a horrific murder on Twitter that disturbed me for ages. I guess it was CCTV. It was in America, and a couple were angry with their neighbour for not shovelling his drive. They were shouting at him and calling him a pussy. Then the neighbour came out and shot both of them. They were screaming in agony, but still alive. He disappeared but then came back, approached the woman, said, I bet you wished you'd shut your mouth now, and killed her, went up to the man, said, who's the pussy now and killed him. It was so disturbing and traumatizing and stayed with me for a really long time.

I feel like this kind of thing is brutalising us all.

I think it's done both in fairly equal measures. I'm glad it wasn't around when I was a child - I think that's when it's most potentially damaging - but I'm really glad it's there now i'm an adult.

The internet, like everything else, can be used well or badly.
Overall, I'm in favour. It allows people to communicate. Also, if MN had been available when I was a young married woman I would have left my husband long before I actually did.

Pensioner here. I think the internet can be a great tool to help life.
Unhappily, a lot of it is harmful.

I agree, most of the evils of the Internet are created by social media. There are many, many good things but social media is not good.

The internet itself is benign - it's what people choose to do with it. It simply reflects human nature which doesn't change much.

The thing that most people don't seem to realise is that lockdown would never have happened without the Internet. We have had many pandemics before (most recent in 1968) and most more dangerous. But Internet allowed people to work from home, order things etc. So another downside fire people like me who thinks lockdowns more damaging than Covid.

Yes and no. It’s good to have so much information to hand, but I think it has affected my concentration. No matter, I’m widowed, live alone and it’s quite a friend to me.
I’m afraid my estimation of humankind had gone down. People reveal thoughts we never knew they had and would have been shocked if we did.
And I never knew so many people couldn’t spell!

Agree with most of the posts here, there are upsides and downsides, but what ticks me off is being denied the choice to do things the "analogue" way. I hate with a passion ringing some organisation for specific reason to be on hold for up to an hour while a recorded voice keeps telling me that the answers to most queries are on the website. Trust me, you muppet, the answer is not on the website and your chat bot thinks I'm trying to order a takeaway.....so I need a human!!!

Also, our entire infrastructure depends on the Internet now. One false move and chaos can easily break out, and cyberwarfare is ongoing already.

I'm 55 and just think we've likely engineered our own demise in so many ways, especially on the psychological front. Especially where AI is concerned - I mean when people who've helped develop it are going "Errr, hang on a minute guys, we've got a big basket of unintended consequences over here," I think it's time to pit the brakes on.

But of course, we won't. My developing cynicism just leads me to hope I'll avoid the joys of CDBC and mandatory chipping by shuffling off quietly in the next 10 - 15 years.

I'm a pensioner and think there are pros and cons to life with the internet. On balance, I find it overwhelmingly positive.
When I first used it at work, it was great to send emails instead of handwriting memos. Office practice generally improved with ordering goods online, paying bills, etc. Using Microsoft Excel, instead of handwritten ledgers and double entry bookkeeping. Using Word for letters instead of using a typewriter. Using Access database instead of having a huge card index with client details.
At home it's wonderful to have information at your fingertips which you never had before, even with libraries. Studying is much easier with university libraries online.
Mumsnet is great. I wish I knew about abusive men, narcissistic people and all sorts of relationship issues when i was younger.
Facebook is great to keep in touch with distant friends and find out what is going on locally.
Online shopping is great.
Google maps and public transport apps are great when travelling.
There are things I struggle with now - some apps on the phone which you have to use, such as GP and hospital apps, are not always user friendly for me. Sometimes it would be easier to phone businesses than message them.
Social media for young people can be a nightmare with bullying etc.
There's lots of misinformation for conspiracy theorists.

I don’t think internet has affect society in terms of antisocial behaviour.

You make some very good points @Appalonia I had never been on twitter really but started after the riots as govt started saying there is alot of misinformation on there and perversely I wondered why they were saying that. There is alot of stuff on there that never gets reported so I feel I've got a fuller picture of how people are feeling politically, but also there are some quite disturbing things and algorithms mean you end up in an echo chamber. On the plus side I think it's harder for govt to cover things up and brainwash the population like they have in the past but this can easily tip into conspiracy theories etc.

Personally I don't see the benefit in social media, if anything I think it's more of a negative than a positive.
The internet though, well it can be incredibly useful, but of course that means it can also be unhelpful. If someone's out for doing crappy things the internet can make it easier, but similarly if someone is out for doing good things the internet can make life easier.
But the reality is, it's here to stay, so it's learning to navigate it, and teaching your children how to use it safely is essential. (My teens don't have any social media, they simply aren't mature enough to use it, they'll have full access after GCSEs. And I'll go through all the protocols as we lift the restrictions).

I would gladly see the back of the internet.

Tbh the porn is the thing that worries me especially young teens watching it and it's really violent and sick
Social media has ruined everything
No one lives In the moment it's all about a photo opportunity
The majority of kids have anxiety these days and mental health it can't be a coincidence

I'm almost late 50s & would say Internet & especially social media have brought absolutely huge net benefits & the "harms" are hugely exaggerated & massively compensated for. Also, rose tinted glasses about what was "normal" in the past.