CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the study
Social media is a computer-based technology that allows people to share ideas, views, and information by creating virtual networks and communities. By design, social media is Internet-based, allowing users to instantly disseminate information via electronic methods. The content includes personal information, papers, movies, and photographs. On a computer, tablet, or smartphone, users connect with social media via web-based software or apps. Social media originated as a way to keep in touch with friends and family, but it was quickly adopted by businesses searching for a new way to communicate with customers. The power of social media is its ability to connect and exchange information with everyone on the planet, or with a big number of individuals at once.
The power of social media is its ability to connect and exchange information with everyone on the planet, or with a big number of individuals at once. There are around 3.8 billion social media users on the planet. Every year, new social media apps such as TikTok and Clubhouse emerge, joining the ranks of big social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram. By 2023, the number of individuals in the United States who use social media is predicted to reach 257 million.
According to the Pew Research Center, social media users are on average younger. Nearly 90% of those between the ages of 18 and 29 used social media in some capacity. Furthermore, with an annual salary of above $75,000, these customers are more educated and affluent.
As a result of social media, the way we communicate with one another online has changed. It’s given us the ability to learn about what’s happening in the globe in real time, interact with one another and keep in touch with long-distance friends, and have quick access to a limitless amount of knowledge. Social media has made the world seem more accessible in many respects by allowing users to find common ground with others online. Using social media, according to a Pew Research Center study, is associated with having more friends and a more diverse personal network, especially in developing nations. Many adolescent friendships begin online, with 57 percent of adolescent friendships beginning this way. Businesses are also making use of it. Denny’s, for example, has created entire Twitter personas to appeal to younger customers with its own language and personality. Buzan and Hansen (2009: 11–12) identified four key questions that structure international security studies (ISS): focusing on the state as the primary referent object, including internal and external threats that have become increasingly blurred as a result of globalization, expanding beyond the military dimension and the use of force and its close link to “a dynasty,” and expanding beyond the military dimension and the use of force and its close link to “a dynasty,” two decalogues. During the Cold War, the majority of the ISS was focused on foreign threats, but “ethnic violence and civil wars came to the fore, Denny’s, for example, has created entire Twitter accounts to appeal to younger customers by using their own language and personalities. Buzan and Hansen (2009: 11–12) identified four key questions that structure international security studies (ISS): focusing on the state as the key referent object, including internal and external threats that have become increasingly blurred by globalization, expanding beyond the military dimension and the use of force and its close link to “a dynasty,” and expanding beyond the military dimension and the use of force and its close link to “a dynasty,” two decagonal questions. During the Cold War, the majority of the ISS was focused on external threats, but “ethnic conflict and civil wars came to the fore,” according to the report. Mathews (1989) and Myers (1990) recognized environmental degradation as one of the new security problems (1989, 1989a). Two main threats to humanity were also recognized by the Brundtland Commission (1987): “The first is the threat of nuclear annihilation.” The second is the destruction of the ecosystem on a worldwide scale.” In 1988, President Gorbachev stated, “The link between man and the environment has grown dangerous.” “It’s no longer missiles that pose a threat from the sky; it’s global warming.” “Social unrest driven by poverty and inequality, environmental deterioration, and internal conflicts leading to fresh refugee flows,” Brundtland (1993: 189–194) listed as new “threats” to security. “Environmental challenges from a rapidly growing global population will increase the likelihood of such conflicts,” she said. Climate change, desertification, deforestation, massive extinctions of species and biological variety, and depletion of natural resources are all factors to consider. The “threats to the world’s atmosphere” were the most important to her. Senator Al Gore raised several environmental concerns in 1992, from a local (tactical) to a global (strategic) level, including global warming and ozone depletion. Eilen Claussen described global environmental risks as those that are “human-caused and have, or may be anticipated to have, significant economic, health, environmental, or quality-of-life consequences for the United States” in 1997. Whether or whether this concept may be extended to environmental problems, this author recommends confining the threat concept to hardware-related military concerns and referring to environmental threats as “environmental security challenges, vulnerabilities, and dangers” (Brauch 2005a, 2008a). However, in political realities, such as in US national security strategy, this suggestion could not be seen. Several countries responded to the fundamental shift in the nature of threats by expanding their security concepts to include a growing number of new non-military soft security threats such as economic vulnerabilities, environmental challenges, political and societal instabilities (e.g. German Defence White Paper; BMVg 1994: 25–26), pointing to a growing number of new non-military soft security threats. According to an official German publication, “risk evaluations of future developments must be based on a broad notion of security.” They must take into account social, economic, and environmental developments in relation to the security of Germany and its allies.” Several US national security strategy documents from the Clinton administration allude to a significant shift in security risks (Matthew/Mc Donald 2009). “To shift the basis of defense planning from a ‘threatbased’ model that has dominated thinking in the past to a ‘capabilities-based’ model in the future [that]… focuses more on how an adversary might fight rather than specifically who the adversary might be or where a war might occur,” the Bush administration announced on September 30, 2001 in its Quadrennial Defense Review Report (QDR). (Brauch chap. 12 in Brauch 2003b).
Statement of research problem
The news of Nigeria’s Twitter ban dominated weekend talks, and rightly so. Nigerians use Twitter not only for social networking, but also to notify security officials to incidents of insecurity, particularly with the rise in armed banditry and herdsmen attacks in various parts of the country due to a lack of emergency services. On some occasions, it has also been used to encourage fundraising and draw attention to key national issues among leaders and the general public. Last year, Emmanuel Dan-Awoh, SEO Analyst at Nairametrics, stated of Twitter’s effect on news reporting in Nigeria, “Twitter is by far the most valuable social media network for Nairametrics, accounting for more than 90% of page views and visits.” He went on to suggest that Twitter was only used by a small number of people. According to the exclusive report, Twitter was not only the primary means of receiving and filtering news for the Nigerian government, but it also provided additional benefits, stating that “official communication still leans more toward traditional media, but the use of social media by government agencies is growing while the use of traditional media is stagnating.” Despite the fact that Facebook has more Nigerians than Twitter, the latter’s open app features make it easier for the government to engage and communicate with citizens, as well as for citizens to instantly distribute information and rebut false news. The government’s move to destroy a critical tool for disseminating emergency information and communicating with people is counterproductive in light of the country’s increased vulnerability.
Objectives of the study
The following is the study’s principal goal:
- The purpose of this investigation is to learn why the Nigerian government has banned Twitter.
- To determine the impact of Twitter’s ban on information dissemination on security threats.
- To learn about other ways to report security threats, go here.
- To determine how security threats information sources can be verified so that the correct message can be communicated.
Research questions
For the study, the following research questions have been generated.
- What are the reasons for Nigeria’s government’s Twitter ban?
- What effect does Twitter’s ban on information dissemination have on security threats?
- What additional options are there for reporting security threats?
- What are the methods for verifying security threat information sources in order to transmit the correct message?
Significance of the study
The importance of this research cannot be overstated:
The purpose of this study is to look into the stress management practices of working women in Lagos, Nigeria.
The outcomes of this study will surely provide much-needed information to government agencies, career women, businesses, and academic institutions.
Scope of the study
The influence of the Twitter ban on the spread of security risks information is investigated in this study. As a result, the scope of this research would be confined to Twitter users in the state of Kaduna. Nigeria
Limitations of the study
A variety of issues limited the scope of this investigation, including the following:
just like any other research, there are challenges, such as a lack of appropriate information on the issue under study and the inability to obtain data.
The researcher experienced financial constraints in obtaining essential resources, as well as in printing and collating questionnaires.
Time constraint: Another constraint is time, which makes it difficult for the researcher to balance writing the research while simultaneously doing other academic tasks.
Operational definition of terms
Impact is the action of one object colliding with another forcibly.
Twitter: make a call that consists of mild tremulous sounds that are repeated.
A security threat is a possible hazard to computer systems and organizations. The cause could be physical, such as a computer containing sensitive information being stolen.
Dissemination of information: the act of disseminating or broadcasting information.
REFERENCES
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/social-media.asp
Concepts of Security Threats, Challenges, Vulnerabilities, and Risks by Hans Günter Brauch (2021)
H.G. Brauch et al. (2020), Coping with Global Environmental Change, Disasters, and Security, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, Hexagon Series on Human and Environmental Security and Peace 5, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-17776-7 2.
Leave a Comment