Question

read the following passage:
\social media is barely a decade old, but in that short time it has transformed how we communicate. the rise of platforms like twitter and facebook means we no longer have to depend on t.v. or newspapers to know or share the news. we can do it ourselves with just a phone and a finger. but is this wide - open flow of information going to free us, or enslave us? at first, people thought social media would save democracy. now they fear these networks will instead destroy it.
\only five years ago, newspapers were filled with articles bearing hopeful titles such as big data will save politics. the stories described how citizens were using free social platforms to organize protests and live - stream the overthrow of dictators. they celebrated the ability of ordinary people to instantly share their stories and photos, which meant governments couldnt hide the truth. analysts predicted that in time, social media would help spread democracy all over the world.
\instead, many of those same papers are now running stories with disturbing headlines like social media rotting democracy from within. although social media is still a powerful tool for spreading information, it has proven to be as good or better at spreading disinformation. the high volume of false or misleading stories can drown out the truth, making it hard for regular people to tell the facts from the fictions. at best they become discouraged. at worst, they are tricked into distrusting experts, institutions, and people with different views. as one writer put it, there is mounting evidence that social media are being used to manipulate and deceive the voting public — and to undermine democracies and degrade public life.\
what is the main idea?
social media does more harm than good and people should stop using it.
social media was invented to spread truth and democracy.
social media was projected to strengthen democracy but may end up destroying it instead.
social media lets people bypass traditional media and communicate directly with one another.

Explanation:

The passage first mentions that initially, social media was thought to save democracy (projected to strengthen it). Then it shows that now there are concerns as social media can spread disinformation, which may undermine democracies (may end up destroying it). Option A is incorrect as the passage doesn't say people should stop using it. Option B is wrong as there's no mention of why it was invented. Option D only mentions one aspect (bypassing traditional media) and not the main idea about democracy.

Answer:

C. Social media was projected to strengthen democracy but may end up destroying it instead.