Raven Leverett
Asst. Features Editor
There has been a rave over Facebook, Skype, Facetime and many other technological devices that allow us to talk to our friends anywhere we are.
The most recent form of communication that has college students raving is Snapchat.
Snapchat is an app that can be downloaded on Androids and iPhones that allows people to send pictures to friends that will only be displayed for a few seconds, and then will be deleted forever.
However, this is not entirely true. According to the privacy policy for Snapchat it states,
“…we temporarily process and store your images and videos in order to provide our services. Although we attempt to delete image data as soon as possible after the message is transmitted, we cannot guarantee that the message contents will be deleted in every case.”
Some may feel that Snapchat is not really texting.
However, since the app offers the option of adding a caption or other doodles, then to me it is texting.
This new form of texting makes college students think that they can send any form of inappropriateness to friends without consequences.
I personally find this app absurd, as a lot of people use this app for “sexting.”
Just the other night, I was with a few friends while they were using this app, and they were drawing over pictures putting sexual and inappropriate gestures.
Aren’t there enough ways yet for people to entertain their hormonal minds?
In addition, even if all the pictures did get deleted after 10 seconds, the receiver still has the opportunity to take a screenshot picture of the Snapchat picture.
I personally am not a user of Snapchat since I find it to be an app meant for people who have something to hide.
Was Snapchat created for sexting or are there other purposes too?
It doesn’t always have to be used in some sort of sexual way. Using it for many functions enables this app to appeal to all audiences.
Sending funny pictures of yourself or others can make a friend laugh or brighten their day.
Granted, most of the people I know use Snapchat on that borderline of funny and sexual.
I feel Snapchat is a product that should have never launched in September of 2011, as the big draw is to give users the reassurance that what they send to ‘play’ will be deleted forever within a few seconds.
It should have been called SnapSex rather than Snapchat.