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SOCIAL MEDIA AS TOOLS FOR POLITICAL EDUCATION

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

The mass media have always played significant roles across the globe as the general public typically relies on it to provide information regarding political issues, social issues, entertainment and news in pop culture. In advance democracies, the media is freer and more independent when it comes to journalistic content. The media are generally defined as those channels of communication which are capable of reaching heterogeneous audiences simultaneously with uniform messages (Oyesomi, Oyero, and Okorie, 2014). This diversified communication technologies are divided into traditional media and new/digital media. The three forms of traditional media are print (newspapers, books, magazines), broadcast (television, radio), and cinema (movies, documentaries) while internet and mobile mass communication (email, social media sites, websites, and internet-based radio and television) are referred to as the new or digital media. The notion of the media as the fourth branch of government, as watchdog, as guardian of the public interest, and as a conduit between governors and the governed is widely claimed. It is believed that an informed citizenry is beneficial to democracy. Citizens who are informed and knowledge about politics tend to make decisions that reflect their real interests. Citizens only need to watch the news, listen to the radio, read the newspaper or browse the internet or social media to receive a wide range of information (Lindstedt and Naurin 2010) which can help to promote and improve government performance and accountability (Snyder and Stromberg, 2010) as well as reduce corruption (Natamba, MuyombaTamale, Ssemakula, Nimpammya and Asiimirwe, 2010). Citizens’ participation in the political process is an important element of a democratic political culture. The participation of members of a political community is usually influenced by the political information, attitudes, feelings and skills they possessed. Cognitive orientation or political knowledge about the political system of a nation is important to the quality of citizenship and health of the collective (de Vreesea and Boomgaarden, 2006). Political knowledge is a measure of citizen’s ability to provide correct answers to a specific set of fact-based questions (Boudreau and Lupia, 2011). It depends, in part, upon access to information about governmental actions, political officeholders, and so on, and generally refers to relevant information and the level of skills and understanding of civic and political affairs surrounding regional, national and global issues (Molaei, 2017). Bathelt (2015) opined that political knowledge breed politically informed, vigilant, vocal and competent citizens who are able to evaluate their own interests and act to protect these interests in political situations. High political knowledge helps citizens to better understand the current affairs shaping their societies, contributes to more stable and consistent political attitudes. It also helps citizens to achieve their own interests and make decisions that conform to their attitudes and preferences, promotes support for democratic values, facilitates trust in the political system, and motivates political participation (Galston, 2001). While citizens that lack the minimum levels of knowledge and skills to meaningfully engage in politics can be described as political dropouts (Milner, 2010). The media in Nigeria are sources of political information, and avenue for political participation and discussion, right from the colonial era to the present democratic dispensation. Obasanjo (1992) described it as any agency that operates for the articulation and dissemination of ideas and information, generally with the intent to influence an audience or the institution that constitutes legalized power and authority. Against this background, the contributions of media to the political knowledge of citizens over time have been a focus of social scientists and media scholars.

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