CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the study
The term “social media” is widely used to describe new types of media that allow for interactive engagement. The evolution of media is sometimes separated into two epochs: the broadcast epoch and the interactive epoch. During the broadcast era, media was nearly entirely centralized, with one institution such as a radio or television station, newspaper corporation, or film production studio disseminating messages to a large audience. Media feedback was frequently indirect, delayed, and impersonal. Individual communication was normally mediated on a much smaller scale, usually through personal letters, phone conversations, or occasionally on a somewhat larger scale through photocopied family newsletters. Individual interaction on a large scale became easier for individuals with the emergence of digital and mobile technology.One person could now communicate with a large number of people, and fast feedback was a possibility. Citizens and customers used to have restricted and relatively subdued voices, but now they can share their thoughts with a large number of people. Because of the low cost and accessibility of modern technology, individuals now have more options for media consumption than ever before, and instead of relying on only a few news outlets, they can now seek information from a variety of sources and discuss it with others via message boards. Social media is at the heart of this continuing change. The characteristics, common forms, and common functions of social media are explored here.
Core Characteristics
All forms of social media use a digital platform, whether it’s mobile or fixed. However, not all digital content is essentially social media. Social media is defined by two features. To begin with, social media allows for some kind of participation. Even if social networking platforms like Facebook offer passive observation of what others are sharing, social media is never fully passive. At the very least, a profile must be built that enables for the possibility of engagement to begin. That characteristic alone distinguishes social media from traditional media, where personal accounts are not common.
Second,
Social media, by virtue of their participatory nature, include interaction. This interaction can take place with long-time friends, family, or acquaintances, as well as with new people who share common interests or even belong to the same acquaintance circle. Although many social media platforms were or are first regarded as unique, as they become more incorporated into people’s personal and professional life, they become less noticeable and more anticipated.
Common Forms
As this review of common kinds of social media shows, some are primarily used for amusement or personal relationships, while others are primarily used for work or professional purposes, although most allow for both.
Email.
Open records laws apply to those who work for public organizations (including politicians, state university professors, and government administrators and assistants), allowing interested people or organizations to request any emails sent or received to a government-funded email account or an email account used to conduct government business. page 1159 Some businesses had the ability to communicate messages electronically within a local computing network before the internet, hence email existed before the internet. Sending communications across multiple servers became possible as the Internet grew in popularity.
Email serves as a medium of communication.
Quick and dependable way to send documents or images, updates or important details at a moment’s notice, or to share a single piece of information with a large group of people. Spam, or unsolicited email from commercial sources, affects a large number of people. Computer viruses that employ email programs to gather all of the email addresses in a user’s address book frequently worsen spam. An address book is a list of email addresses that a person stores in order to send an email to a single person or a group of people quickly. People frequently separate their address books into different categories of friends, colleagues, and family members in order to send mail to the people who are most important to them.
Texters.
A texter, like email, is a two-way communication channel that allows users to convey a message to another person or a group of people fast. Despite the fact that the media
People of all ages have adapted to texting, despite the fact that depictions frequently make it appear as if it is a particularly youthful practice. Younger people, on the other hand, text more frequently and at a faster rate. It’s become easier to text photographs or copy and paste links into texters to share them with others as texting technology has advanced. Texters frequently employ emoticons, which are graphics made up of keyboard symbols such as a smiling face (e.g.,:-P), a behavior that is also widespread in email. Chatters are the forerunners of texters.
Blogs.
Blogs.
The term “blog” comes from the word “weblog.” A blog is a website where someone writes about themselves.
An individual or a group can use the internet to exchange information or ideas with a large group of people. It is not rare for someone to create a blog and then abandon it. Some of the most popular blogs are updated on a regular basis so that their readers know when to anticipate new posts. Blogs address a wide range of topics, including all types of political issues. A feedback forum is a common feature of blogs, where readers can interact with both the blog author and others who have commented after reading an entry. On the internet, many traditional media outlets have implemented blog-like features.
Statement of research problem
The suspension of Twitter’s operations in Nigeria by the Nigerian federal government may have put both parties in a catch-22 situation, since the duo has lost millions of followers that they had built up over a half-decade. The controversy has cost Twitter billions of dollars, while Nigerians in the commercial and public sectors have lost their ability to communicate instantly. Last week, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, announced Twitter’s suspension after the company deleted parts of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet that it found to be in violation of its rules. Following a barrage of criticism from social activists, who claimed the suspension was an affront to Nigerians’ right to free expression, According to the government, the temporary ban on the internet platform was imposed in reaction to the company’s repeated violations of the country’s national security interests. The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) issued a directive in response to the suspension order, instructing all telcos and broadcasting media to deactivate their Twitter accounts and limit access to the internet service. Many Nigerians, on the other hand, have used a virtual private network (VPN) to get to Twitter in order to get around the federal government’s blockade. Although Buhari, his deputy, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), and many government agencies, including the armed forces, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), have all stopped tweeting, some governors, such as Malam Nasir el-Rufai (Kaduna), Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (Ondo), and Mr. Seyi Makinde (Oyo), have continued to do so. Analysts said on Monday that both the federal government and Twitter must be feeling the sting of the suspension’s negative impact. It amounts to a loss of an instant communication tool for the Nigerian government, its agencies, and millions of private sector users of the microblogging facility, which has served to simplify the broadcast and receipt of information important for the running of their companies. Agencies such as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), which used its Twitter handle to rapidly communicate with the public about the COVID-19 outbreak, would now have to revert to slower communications platforms such as e-mail, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. The suspension of Twitter’s service came a day after Mohammed announced it. Senior lawyers, however, have questioned the legality of Malami’s order, claiming that it is not based on the law and that Nigerians cannot be prosecuted for crimes that are not defined by law. The federal government met with ambassadors from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, and Ireland in Nigeria on Monday to seek their understanding on the suspension of Twitter’s operations in Nigeria, which has sparked global outcry. Except for the First Lady, Hajia Aisha Buhari, who cancelled her Twitter account once Twitter’s activities in Nigeria were suspended, Buhari, Osinbajo, and a few other prominent government officials kept their accounts, albeit inactive.
Objectives of the study
The following is the study’s principal goal:
- To determine the causes that led to the Twitter ban
- To learn more about how the prohibition on Twitter has impacted information distribution in Nigeria.
- To discover suitable methods for making knowledge dissemination simple.
- To learn how to improve Nigeria’s information dissemination
Research questions
For the study, the following questions have been prepared.
- What are the reasons for Twitter’s suspension?
- What impact has the Twitter ban had on information transmission in Nigeria?
Leave a Comment