Uses and Abuses: How increased Social Media usage threatens Nigeria’s democracy

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Nigerians should be concerned not just about Facebook, but also about how we engage with new media technologies and how such ...

. Nigerians should be concerned not just about Facebook, but also about how we engage with new media technologies and how such technologies are changing our society.

Mobile phone ownership has surpassed ownership rates for radio, television, and computers both at the personal and household levels, and in January 2021, 82.1 per cent of all web traffic in Nigeria was via mobile phones. The implication is that the basis for individual judgment, opinions, perceptions, attitudes and often behaviors are influenced by non-human autonomous systems and can be subject to machine manipulation. With inadequate regulatory systems, social media and content curating companies have unlimited capabilities to control what Nigerian youths are exposed to. What they read, what they know about, what they consider important, and what not.

An ecosystem of rumours and untrustworthy information diminishes trust in factual media. When trust in factual media or democratic institutions is diminished, people become more vulnerable to manipulation from malign actors – foreign or domestic. The opportunity for consensus becomes narrower as the basis for consensus–informed, accurate, and trusted information–is diminished.

 

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