Role of Social Media in Politics - Essay Example

Role of social media in politics Introduction The term “media” de s any tool or technique that has been specifically designed so as to reach a wider group of users or viewers. Media started with the advent of magazines and newspapers followed by the invention of audio and visual media like television and radio. However, today, the world of media is dominated by a comparatively newer aspect which is the social media. Social media has started having a highly profound impact on the global societies. The social media has become extremely popular among the people across the world because of its ability to target a wide group of public and because the people themselves can start revolutions and take active decisions through the use of this media. Social media can serve a number of significant purposes in the modern societies. They are used as active modes of communication, raising awareness about political and social matters, entertainment, education, news and publications, public announcements, current affairs and so on. Also, the social media impacts the arena of modern politics through a combination of the important interfaces of social communications and the use of technology. This report is prepared with the aim of discussing and evaluating the role of social media in different political unrest situations. The report is prepared by introducing social media followed by an analysis of the impact of social media on the national and international political scenarios. This is done by considering the examples of political unrest and protests in countries like Middle East, Philippines, Moldova and Iran and analysing the role that social media played in aggravating or controlling these situations. The report also includes a discussion about the advantages and disadvantages of social media in politics. A suitable conclusion is given by summarizing the entire write up and highlighting the main findings from the report. Discussion Social media Social Media Network (SMN) is a part of the Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). The social media networks can be defined as the online utilities and tools that facilitate communication, collaboration and participation in information generation through the digital mediums. 1Social media is an extended part of media which uses the information communication technologies to communicate and collect information through different channels formed by the convergence of technologies available in the foray of computing, microelectronics, optoelectronics, broadcasting, software and telecommunications. 2It can also be said that the social media tools are the websites that provide information to the users and also allows interaction with the users as well as among the user groups. The two way nature of the social media networks is a significant feature that has made the role of social media much prominent in the modern world. The four most commonly used social media networks are Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and blogging. There are also several other emerging social media networks which have started playing an active and influential role among the users in the global societies. The main attraction of the social media services lie in the fact that any general person with basic computer skills can use the common social media applications like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and independent blogs. The creation of social media contents is easy and involves minimal costs. Images and videos can be taken by a smartphone and the contents can be easily embedded in sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or blogs. In other words, the creation and communication of the social media content are easy tasks that may have far reaching effects depending upon the intention of the creator and the acceptance of the other users of social media contents. The social media networks have given rise to new political energy sources which have enabled the creation of unique relationships between the public, political powers and media technologies. The social media movements also influence the development and activities of a number of civil activist groups which in turn strengthens the political and civil protests taken up in different parts of the world. Role of social media in political unrest with examples Media can be considered to be the overseer in the national and international political systems. The role of social media is becoming more and more significant with the rising popularity of the digital mediums of communication. 3The social media as a part of the digital era has brought about a major change in the ways in which political information are communicated to the common people as well as in the reactions of the general public towards the political incidents and situations. The social media focuses on highlighting the details of the political scenarios, situations and decisions so that the general people can gain a better understanding of their roles, take appropriate decisions as well as influence the overall political scenarios existing in a particular country or even in an international platform. Different social movements in the contemporary world have strengthened the belief that the social media plays an active and significant role in the international political unrests. The Arab Spring can be identified as a major example to cite how the social media can influence the direction of a political scenario. 4The Arab spring was a major revolution in the Arab world that resulted in the overthrow of the various regimes of Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. The revolutionary wave began in December, 2010 and included riots, civil wars and both violent and non-violent protests. This revolution stemmed from the dissatisfaction of the local people with the state governments. 5The protesters in Arab Spring took up contemporary techniques of modern civil resistance and built up sustained campaigns including strikes, marches, rallies, demonstrations etc. But the most significant influence of the Arab Spring revolution was identified to be the effective use of the available social media in the country. The protesters in this political revolution actively used the social media to communicate, organize as well as raise awareness among the domestic and international supporters even in the situation of the numerous attempts by the state government to enforce internet censorship and repression. 6Today, the political developments, decisions and incidents are communicated across the globe in fractions of seconds through the social media. This makes it mandatory for the political groups to remain more conscious about their actions and decisions because the protests of the common people can be instantly magnified through a strategic use of the social media. 7For example, the totalizing power of the different social media in the political protests like the Arab Spring or the Jasmine Revolution indicates that the role of the social media in influencing the political unrests cannot be neglected. However, it should be mentioned in this context that the levels of influence of the social media on the political situations are largely dependent on the availability of the information and communication technology components in the country. For example, the reach of the social media in the underdeveloped countries like Sub-Saharan Africa would be much weaker as compared to that in the developed countries in the western world where the social media can use the full potential of the available technological infrastructures. 8Another example of the role of social media in the political unrest can be the impeachment trial of the President of Philippines, Joseph Estrada in 2001. This event marked the first ever milestone in the role of social media in political unrest. The impeachment trial of Joseph Estrada was held on 17 January, 2001 when the loyalists of the Philippine congress placed their votes to remove the key evidences against the President. However, within a period of less than two hours of this decision, the activists in Philippines organized a mass protest at the main crossroads in Manila. 9The organization of this protest was made through the forwarding of text messages. More than one million people arrived in the protest and obligated the legislators to present the evidences and ultimately forced the leader to be removed from power. Approximately, seven million forwarded messages were sent through the mobile devices in a week’s time which represented the ability of the public to coordinate a rapid and massive response through the use of digital activism or social media. Social media was again used as a main tool for political revolution in Moldova in the year 2009. The activists of the political revolution used a number of social media channels like Live Journal Facebook and Twitter to gather people for the protests and raise awareness regarding the political unrests in the soviet Republic. The Twitter revolution was first noted in this political unrest scenario. The protestors created a high level of awareness among the common people and reached a wide network of people through the use of Tweets regarding the political conditions prevailing in the country. The protest was fuelled by communication of the dissatisfaction of the common people through the different online networking mediums. Though the media in the country did not carry the coverage of the protest, yet more than 90,000 protestors in two days were gathered for the political revolution. 10Although this political protest was not successful in its original objectives to force a change in leadership, yet the digital activism helped to draw a large amount of support and attention from the whole world to the political unjust prevailing in a small country like Moldova. 11Also, this event of political unrest led to the recognition of digital activism as a major source of political control and power. Social media can have a strong impact on the political situations and decisions by supporting the transformation of individuals and by giving them the competencies which can empower them in playing an active and influential role in politics. 12The empowerment of the common people through the use of social media can be identified from the fact that spreading any information in the social media involves a process as simple as taking any video or picture with the use of a Smartphone and posting these contents in the social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or blogs. The use of the social media can aggravate a situation of a political unrest. An example of this in the real world politics can be the incident of the shootout that resulted in the death of a political protester in Tehran, Iran. Neda Agha Soltan was an activist in Iran who was shot to death in June 2009, on her way to join an anti-government protest regarding the controversial presidential election in Tehran, Iran. 13The video of the incident was recorded by an anonymous person thorough the use of a cell phone. Later this person posted the video and its links to various social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube which gathered immediate and high scale attention from the mainstream media. As a result of this, the incident made headlines in top reporting channels like the New York Times and CNN followed by which the death of Neda Agha Soltan became a symbol of the anti-government revolution in Iran. 14Therefore, in this case the social media systems existing in Iran helped to amplify the incident so as to highlight it and make it visible to the whole world. This revolution was highlighted as a technology driven political protest movement against the government which subsequently led to a political upheaval in Iran. 15There is no doubt regarding the fact that the social media networks have revolutionized the way in which the common people can affect the political scenarios. This is made possible by the major changes brought about by the advent of the social media in the way information is communicated among the users.16 The digital communications have entered the era of Web 2.0 in which the information related to social and political issues are not only provided by the government, media or the companies but information can also be shared by individuals through the use of file sharing sites, blogging sites, social networks, Wikis and other related portals. 17This also facilitates the development of groups which may be able to influence changes in political decisions and which can conduct major political protests that have the inherent power to change the political situations, actions and decisions either by aggravating or by controlling these situations of political unrest. Advantages and disadvantages of using social media in politics Social media in the present scenario can be regarded as a tool for communicating with wide base of individuals located across the globe. The major social networking sites which are utilized in scenario of political unrest are Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. First benefit of using social media is it gives an opportunity to upload videos related to political unrest which is communicated at a faster speed throughout the world in comparison to television. On the other hand, through social media protesters can highlight incidents taking place in remote countries which is often not covered by traditional media. Through this form of communication platform a crisis situation can be focused on for greater period of time so as to grab attention of those individuals who are sympathetic towards the cause.18 Social media enables an opportunity for low cost and quick dissemination of information and even feedback solicitation. The opportunity towards engaging citizens is incomparable and might impact policy development and transparency. It not only emphasizes on transmission of information but even focuses on creation and exchange of required information. Social media at times is even stated as a facilitator of engagement whereby public can actively participate in any protests to develop and improve upon services and policies. This approach in politics contributes toward reducing the aspect of information poverty across the globe. In overall context, sharing, engagement and collaboration can be stated as the major advantages associated with social media in political unrest. However active and timely engagement with this media can only bring forth changes in political conditions prevailing in a country. There are certain issues or disadvantages linked with social media and are because of its multidimensional nature. This form of media goes beyond the concept of static and stationary websites to an interactive tool which facilitates immediate interaction and response. Though this form of interactive media offers great deal of opportunities but is not suitable for politics as no such control or consistency can be obtained on information flow. On the other hand, political users who take the support of social media are considered to be both reactive and proactive, leaving room for error, lack of government control and misinformation. 19Any information that is negative or inaccurate can spread at a faster rate through social media that might lead political leaders to exercise particular caution. The issue which is related to information control can also be termed as long-term information preservation. 20Social media focuses on conveying information so that political issues are resolved and better policies are developed but there is no such attention given on storing required information. The information literacy and digital divide are some of the external challenges which are directly linked with social media. There are individuals who do not possess knowledge, skills and resources which are vital factors for accessing digital media. Inappropriate management of information is a common disadvantage of social media in politics. It can be stated that in political affairs, social media needs to be coupled with engagement strategies and information dissemination mechanism. Conclusion Social media acts as a megaphone when it comes to drawing the attention of wide groups of the worldwide users towards political unrests and situations prevailing in a particular country. The ways in which the social media attracts the attention of the governments and citizens from outside a country are innovative, differentiated and extremely impactful ways. The use of social media highlights the features of any political unrest, opens debates on the topic and encourages both active and passive participation in these situations. For this reason, the social media is often seen as a threat for authoritarian governments. The state governments of different developed and developing countries control the cyber laws in order to order to exert a suitable degree of control over the use of the internet and the social media channels for cultivating political protests and revolutions. However, in the light of the changing democratic mind-sets of the public, it has become extremely difficult to monitor the political participation of the general people. As such, the role of the social media is becoming more significant and powerful in the foray of local and international politics in the modern world. Bibliography Amin, R. The Empire Strikes Back: Social Media Uprisings and the Future of Cyber Activism. ProQuest. Vol. 64, Issue 1, 2012, p. 400. 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