IMPACT OF FACEBOOK, TWITTER AND YOUTUBE AS AN EMERGING MEDIA OF POLITICAL COMMUNICATION
Abstract
The study primarily looked at the impact of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as emerging political communication platforms in Nigeria’s 2015 presidential elections. In this digital era, the emergency and proliferation of social media, also known as citizen media, have revolutionaries Nigeria’s socio-economic and, in particular, political development. It provides a platform for political debates, campaigns, and mobilization.
The survey research method was used to collect data from Research cage University students via questionnaire. Four hundred (200) questionnaires were distributed, with one hundred thirty-three (133) copies retrieved and analyzed.
Findings show that many of the respondents said they voted in the 2015 election, and that they also searched for and participated in political debates and discussions on social media before, during, and after the election, and that many of them voted in the 2015 elections.
In the same vein, for the first time in Nigerian political history, social networking usage during the election was extremely high; no wonder many claimed that their participation in the election was due to online discussion platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
The study’s context
The impact of new media technology on political communication around the world cannot be overstated. In recent years, social media platforms have played a dominant role in political mobilization, participation, and electioneering campaigns in both developed and developing countries across the globe. It is documented that since President Barack Obama of the United States of America’s effective use of social media, there has been an increase in the use of new media technologies in facilitating political communication in modern times.
Obama’s victory is largely attributed to his campaign organization’s massive use of social media, which served as an inspiration to other world leaders. During the 2011 presidential elections, for example, President Goodluck Jonathan and other political candidates used social media to execute their political campaigns.
Throughout history, political campaigns have evolved in response to the advancement of technology available to political candidates. As technology advances, politicians will be able to use it to help disseminate their manifestos (Emruli & Baca, 2011 p. 155).
The 2011 general elections in Nigeria were the first litmus test for the use of social media by political parties, candidates, and civil society organizations. The election was historic in that it was the first time that new media technologies such as Facebook, blogs, LinkedIn, and other social networks were used to facilitate political communication and participation in Nigeria (Dagona, Karick, & Abubakar, 2013, p.2).
Thus, new media technologies have redefined contemporary methods of political communication, resulting in a significant shift toward the use of these modern tools in the electoral process. This new paradigm shift has called into question previous methods of political communication in which television, radio, and newspapers dominated coverage of political campaigns, becoming the primary source of election-related information.
Today, however, social media has become a major channel through which political parties and candidates communicate with voters in order to share critical information about their policies, programs, and manifestos.
Because of the ease, reach, and speed of social media, it has become a tool that is revolutionizing the field of political communication around the world. In places where they exist, social media has almost become an inseparable part of human life.
Social media has recently evolved new forms of democracy and government, and has become a clear and more effective voice for many. In fact, social media has an impact on all aspects of human life. The effects of social media were most visible during the 2015 general elections.
It was felt during the campaign and, eventually, during the voting procedures. According to the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (2012), the 2011 Nigerian elections saw an impressive use of social media as a tool for political communication. It was used for campaigns on personal websites, blogs, all social media apps, and a variety of other platforms.
Aside from that, social media was used to undermine and even destroy the image of “other” political parties, particularly the People’s Democratic Party and the All Progressive Party. During the 2015 general election, social media became a more powerful tool, even a lethal weapon.
There have been many releases in the form of videos, voice notes, headlines, and broadcasts that have made or ruined many political parties and individuals. For example, a publication about Senator Buruji Kashamu nearly derailed his political ambitions and, eventually, his inauguration.
Both General Muhammadu Buhari and Senator Bola Tinubu were subjected to a hate video. Normally, these videos would have put an end to these people’s political ambitions in other places. In the last two general elections, social media has become the most accessible source of information.
Before the election, social media disseminated numerous messages to the public, many of which went viral. Social media disseminated a great deal of information to the public, which could have sparked unrest in some volatile countries.
Aside from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s lack of preparedness, social media provided other reasons for the election’s postponement from February 14, 2015 to March 28, 2015. Reasons that led the public to believe that the postponement was beneficial to the ruling party because it would allow the ruling party to manipulate the election in such a way that the electorate’s power would be null and void. This type of report could spark anarchy in some volatile, unstable countries.
Nigeria is not an outlier in this regard. Because social media platforms are unregulated, information flows freely. The information can be disseminated via social media applications such as WhatsApp and BBM, blogs, or even text messages. Because social media is unregulated, it is certain that many of the information is not subject to scrutiny and may be conjured, misrepresented, or even misinformation.
These traces of misinformation were felt in opinion polls and the release of early results, until the panic was subdued by the tension–relieving strategy employed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The social media tension was adequately handled by the tactics, and it gradually dissipated.
This paper discusses the roles of social media in forming or destroying the entity “„Nigeria” in the 2015 general elections, with a focus on the presidential election. In today’s society, social media has become an essential part of public discourse and communication.
The rapid development of social media has resulted in significant changes in how people find groups of people with similar interests, the nature of information, the available news sources, and the ability to request and share ideas (Stieglitz, Dang-Xuan, 2012: 1).
It has had a significant impact on industries such as advertising, public relations, communications, and political communication (Husain et al, 2014: 224). More recently, the importance of social media in politics has been highlighted, owing to the belief that the use of social networking sites (Facebook)
and microblogging services (Twitter) has the potential to positively influence political participation (Stieglitz, Dang-Xuan, 2012: 1). For example, the 2008 United States presidential elections were remembered for their unprecedented use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (Paletz et al., 2015: 259).
The use of social media in the 2008 presidential campaign was continued and even amplified in the 2012 presidential campaign, when both Obama and Romney spent significant sums of money on social media (particularly Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Pinterest)
with the specific goal of reaching the younger generation. Potential voters actively participated in these social media platforms by posting, commenting, and sharing videos, and even the mainstream media covered the two campaigns’ social media war (Paletz et al., 2015: 276).
Furthermore, social networking sites have been used to mobilize people all over the world to protest. Some examples include the 2011 London youth demonstrations in response to high levels of unemployment among young adults, the 2009 Iranian protests against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election, or the Egyptian social movements augmented by Twitter and Facebook when President Mubarak shut down the Internet for five days (Carlisle and Patton, 2013: 883). (Yang, 2013: 709).
Does this visible engagement on social media platforms, however, have an impact on traditional forms of political participation? Several scholars with an interest in electoral campaigns studied the effects of new media use on political participation. According to some researchers, the Internet may encourage political participation (Bucy & Gregson, 2001; Corrado, 1996; Grossman, 1999; Johnson & Kaye, 2003; Shah et al., 2005; Whillock, 1997).
Furthermore, some studies have found that using social networking sites, in particular, increased traditional offline engagement, such as voting (Bakker and de Vreese, 2011), donations, and fundraising (Vitak et al, 2011). Other researchers,
on the other hand, have discovered that the use of social networking sites is not associated with higher levels of political participation (Baumgartner & Morris, 2010, Davis, 1999; Davis & Owen, 1998; Margolis & Resnick, 2000; Putnam, 2000).
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Numerous studies indicate that, by traditional measures, the younger generation is less engaged in politics (in terms of voting, contributing money, volunteering time, or attending a protest meeting) than older citizens (Bauerlein, 2008; Mindich, 2005; Wattenberg, 2007).
Despite the Internet’s rapid development, little attention has been paid to how young adults use social networking sites to participate in politics (Baumgartner, Morris: 2010: 24). Do they use these social networking sites to learn about politics and actually participate in it?
This question is relevant because young people, who are generally uninterested in politics, now have the opportunity to be exposed to and engage in politically-related topics through their online networks, where they are generally active (Baumgartner, Morris: 2010: 25).
In light of this, the researcher intends to investigate the impact of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as emerging political communication platforms in Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election.
THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVE
The primary goal of this research is to look into the impact of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as emerging political communication platforms in the 2015 presidential election. However, in order to ensure the study’s success, the researcher intends to accomplish the following specific goal;
To investigate the role of Facebook in Nigerian political communication.
to investigate the role of social media in the electoral process
To investigate the role of social media in the transmission of political ideology in Nigeria.
To investigate the relationship between new emerging media and traditional media in the upcoming presidential election.
HYPOTHESES FOR RESEARCH
The researcher developed the following research hypotheses to aid in the completion of the study:
H0: Facebook has no significant impact on political communication in Nigeria.
H1: Facebook has a significant impact on Nigerian political communication.
H02: In Nigeria, social media plays no significant role in the electioneering process.
H2: Social media does play a significant role in Nigeria’s electioneering process.
THE STUDY’S IMPORTANCE
The study will provide additional knowledge on the subject matter because it is a relatively new field in Nigeria’s ever-changing field of communication. Because social media tools have yet to be fully explored for political campaigns in Nigeria, it is hoped that the study will educate politicians and political parties on the importance of social media in contemporary political communication.
This research will also help the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and civil society organizations design programs to promote the use of new media technologies in Nigeria’s political process. Finally, the results of this study will serve as a foundation for future research in the field of political communication.
THE STUDY’S SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
The study’s scope includes the impact of Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter as emerging political communication media in the 2015 presidential election. However, there were some factors in the study’s cause that worked against the study’s scope;
a) RESEARCH MATERIAL AVAILABILITY: The researcher’s research material is insufficient, limiting the scope of the study.
b) TIME: The study’s time frame does not allow for broader coverage because the researcher must balance other academic activities and examinations with the study.
c) FINANCE: The funding available for the research project does not allow for broader coverage because resources are limited due to the researcher’s other academic obligations.
1.7 OPERATIONAL TERM DEFINITION
Twitter is a social networking and online news service in which users post and interact with messages known as “tweets.”
Facebook is a Menlo Park, California-based online social media and social networking service company.
YouTube
YouTube is a popular video-sharing website based in San Bruno, California. Three former PayPal employees founded the service.
The Internet of Things
Social media are computer-mediated technologies that allow people to create and share information, ideas, career interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks.
THE STUDY’S ORGANIZATION
For ease of comprehension, this research work is divided into five chapters, which are as follows: The first chapter is concerned with the introduction, which includes the (overview, of the study), statement of problem, objectives of the study, research question, significance of the study, research methodology, definition of terms, and the study’s historical background.
The second chapter emphasizes the theoretical framework on which the study is based, as well as a review of related literature. The third chapter discusses the study’s research design and methodology. The fourth chapter focuses on data collection, analysis, and presentation of findings. The study’s summary, conclusion, and recommendations are presented in Chapter 5.
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