We all have that one friend that has messed up before, whether they were extremely late to a huge event or bombed the most important test of their lives. But with all the technology that surrounds the life of a college student today there are much easier ways to get yourself into trouble, and I don’t mean accidentally calling your mom when you really wanted to call your crush and ask what they are doing that night. I’m talking about sexting. We’ve all heard of it and most of us all know someone that has done it. Whether it be over the Internet or through an SMS text, if it ends up in the wrong hands there could be a disaster. But, this is all about to change.
As I was sitting with a few of my friends on campus, I noticed a girl in the corner of the room, making a strange face into the camera of her cell phone. I wandered over and tried to casually figure out what she was doing. “It’s an app called snap chat. You can send any type of picture you want and when the person you send it to receives it, they can only see the picture for three seconds before it gets deleted forever.” As I overheard the conversation between the girl and her friend I became very intrigued. I had never heard of something like this before. I went back to my computer and quickly researched this app and what it is all about.
The makers of this Snap Chat app seem to be highly aware that people in this country are always tempted to send racy pictures of themselves. Look at the big time stars that have done it and gotten caught: Kanye West, Kim Kardashian and Scarlett Johannsen just to name a few. But here is the thing, because the makers of Snap Chat know this about the public, they are putting an app out there so we can continue to sext. Because these photos will be deleted in a matter of seconds there is no way for anyone to get black mailed as a result of a moment of pure insanity.
Snap Chat can be used for 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. This app is becoming a phenomenon on Pitt’s campus. Everywhere I seem to turn lately, someone is taking a picture of themselves and sending it across campus or even to their friends at other schools. Putting aside the sexting aspect of it, this app is a great way to keep in touch and make those hour and fifteen-minute classes go by quicker.
Whichever way you decide to use Snap Chat, it functions the same way. However, as much as we would like to think this app is only used for sending funny selfies to our friends, this is probably not the case. In the past few years sexting has been the new trend and now with this app it makes it all the more easier. Whether this app that is circling our campus recently is good or bad is for you to decide.