In history, it was verbal,  
Before we wrote it down,  
Then it was tomes,  
Encyclopaedias all around.  
They were indexed,  
Searchable on a disk,  
Before the world of the internet,  
With its powerful clicks.

We stand now at a point,  
Where trust and truth diverge,  
Where social media is,  
Where people go to search.

No longer primary sources,  
Just opinion disguised as fact,  
Where vaccines kill,  
And the world is flat,  
And you read things that,  
"They" don't want you to know.

With phrases like,  
"You can't say this,"  
Followed by them saying it,  
"They won't let me share this,"  
Followed by them sharing it,  
"Freedom of speech is dead,"  
Followed by the speech they've freely said.

Social media is not a search engine,  
Just as Bob from the pub is not a source,  
Don't believe everything that's spread,  
Don't become Orwell's horse,  
Being sceptical of those in power,  
Doesn't mean believing the opposite.

Please stop using social media,  
As a search engine,  
Or we may not live to regret it.

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As social media becomes our go-to search engine, the dangers of misinformation and the manipulation of truth become increasingly evident.

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