"Facebook is dead," is one of those overused euphemisms that is everywhere right now. It's claimed that anyone under the age of "Mom" wouldn't be caught dead using it, and opt for services such as Twitter and Instagram instead. While it may be true that young users are down, that's not to say we've completely left.
I may be one of the rare few who still actively use Facebook, and I might even use it more now than before. While photo albums, impulsive page-liking, and frequent status updates may have subsided, there are plenty of uses that keep me on Facebook.
1. News
While Twitter may be better at up-to-the-minute breaking stories, Facebook has made great progress in showcasing news. Their trending topics are invaluable to those in media who need to quickly know what is actually buzzing. The "Top Stories" feature shows you the news stories that have gotten the most engagement, and they will remain towards the top of your feed for days at times. Rather than scrolling through any one news site, I can go through my newsfeed and get everything at once. (Note: You need to "Like" a handful of new sources for this to work well.)
2. Facial Recognition
Does this scenario sound familiar? You're talking to your friend and they mention that Joe is dating Sarah, you have no idea what Sarah looks like so you check her Facebook. You find her (based on mutual friends) and you go "Oh, Sarah!" This might be a superficial reason to use Facebook, but I find myself doing it at least once a day.
3. Groups
Groups have stood the test of time as a simple way of communicating and sharing media with a number of people. One of the most common groups millennials will encounter is "Name of University Class of Year," a way of communicating with your peers and administrators before entering college. Smaller groups for planned vacations, work-related teams, or even best friends still have great function and utility. It's not as aggressive as GroupMe.
4. Family
This can be seen as a strength and weakness of Facebook. Sure, you might not want your family members to see every last status you post, but there's privacy settings for that. Also, if you're that worried about your family seeing something, maybe you shouldn't post it at all. Facebook remains a great way to see how your extended family is doing, check on your growing little cousin, and read status updates to keep yourself in the know. Also by keeping your own statuses updated, you can avoid small-talk at family gatherings since they already know "how everything is going."