For young adults, the freshman year of college tends to be a year full of new experiences.

For Vikram Baliga, Ph.D., this also included the launch of the newest social media platform: Facebook.

Baliga, an assistant professor of practice in plant and soil science at Texas Tech University, said this form of media was an excellent and new way of connecting with people.

“I’ve been doing it for a long time in some form or the other,” Baliga said. ” I’ve really been using it as a tool for education, probably since the early 2010s.”

According to Baliga, uing social media platforms can be a beneficial tool for people involved in the agricultural industry. It can allow for a widespread amount of educational information covering essential agriculture topics.

Baliga said the negative press surrounding the agricultural industry forces the hand of those involved to work harder to dispel misinformation and promote accurate understanding.

“We have to gain some credibility with people,” Baliga said. “I try to make sure that any information I put out, I can back up because people are going to call you on it whether you’re right or not.”

Baliga said there are plenty of people on social media who sound like they know what they are talking about when they really don’t know what message they are sending. In hopes of debunking false information and preventing its spread, Baliga uses his expertise and TikTok platform to “fact check” viral videos about plants.

“Social media, for all of its faults, is a powerful tool for us as agriculturists and educators to connect with people,” Baliga said. “I think it’s hard for people to care about what they don’t know about. It’s such an easy way to tell people about stuff.”

Since his introduction to social media, Baliga said he has been intrigued by its growth and adaptations.

“It’s changed a lot,” Baliga said. “Some ways for the better, some ways for the worse, but it has just been an interesting, sort of, evolution to watch.”

With that evolution, a daily issue which has emerged is the spread of misinformation and “click bait.”

“I think that a big part of it is knowing your information, and being credible in and of yourself,” Baliga said. “Make sure that the places where you source your data and things that you’re sharing are good.”

For many current college students, digital media has always been a part of life. Rather than avoiding this aspect of life, Baliga is finding the best and most positive ways to incorporate it with the new era of collegiate students.

“It’s always been there,” Baliga said. “So, it’s just a very different approach to it.”

Baliga isn’t solely focused on his online audience. He said he is also trying to find ways to highlight the positive benefits that social media can have in the classroom.

“I’ve always felt strongly that education should go where people are,” Baliga said. “It’s about more than just coming and sitting in classrooms.”

Sienna Rollin, Lead Writer; Erin Digicamo, Photo Director; Brooke Beyers, Design Coordinator; Julia Cox, Digital and Advertising Manager