Social media has long been a space for fun and entertainment, but increasingly, it’s also a haven for people seeking meaningful forms of connection. Whether they’re looking for mental health support on TikTok or subverting gender norms around corporate emailing etiquette, online communities are spearheading deep conversations around important social and political issues.

With many elections coming up across the world in 2021, people are worried about misinformation spreading on social media platforms. To address this, Facebook is assembling a panel of experts to make decisions on election-related matters.

Privacy-first messaging app Signal is topping the free apps category on the App store. The spike in downloads has come after WhatsApp announced it would be sharing data with Facebook, creating opportunities for brands to offer messaging platforms that quell people's data worries.

Whether to stay connected, informed, or distracted, social media plays multiple roles in people’s day-to-day lives – and it’s proving especially useful during the COVID-19 crisis. Canvas8 polled 1,000 Britons and spoke to eight people to find out what they want from these platforms and why.