Should Politicians Use Social Media?

 

Introduction

Social media has greatly affected the political scene. It is only slightly over a decade ago, that politicians had to heavily rely on print presses and television networks to communicate to the masses. Such means of communication, although effective at the time, were and still are highly costly to the owner of the advert. As such, the introduction of social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram came as a relief to politicians who can communicate with the masses at the touch of a button. In addition, the general public is the biggest beneficiary of social media. Politicians should, therefore, use social media as it enhances service delivery.

The use of social media across the globe keeps rising. There are over a billion users across the globe (Graber & Dunaway, 2017). It is, thus, the most convenient way to communicate with the public. Traditional forms of communication such as the newspapers and television have so far almost been rendered outdated. Take for instance twitter; a tweet by a given politician about a development agenda takes only a few seconds to reach millions of voters. Compared to that, means such as newspapers are very slow. After all, one might have to wait for the next day to get today’s news. The same case with televisions, having to wait for the prime news to know what happened during the day. Social media is the best way to reach the greatest number of voters in the shortest time.

Social Media enhances accountability by politicians. During campaigns, politicians present their agendas upon which they are voted. The voters expect such promises to be fulfilled. Social media allows politicians to communicate their various accomplishments conveniently (Engesser, Ernst, Esser, Büchel, 2017). The voters can also ask the politicians questions directly through the various platforms provided such as the comments sections on Facebook or even the inbox. By expressing the satisfaction or dissatisfaction, the politician and their team can know which steps to take to correct their actions. Such accountability and transparency builds trust among the public and also promotes democracy by ensuring that every voice is heard.

Despite the numerous benefits to the votes, there are concerns that social media use among politicians is not without its downsides. The messages sent by politicians whether, through tweets, Instagram, or even Facebook posts are mostly unverified and hence might mislead the public (Engesser et al., 2017). Such instances have been reported, whereby prominent government officials manipulate information to improve their image towards the unsuspecting public. This is unlike other media, whereby journalists go the extra mile of conducting unbiased investigations. While this is truly tragic, it does not invalidate the significance of social media. Such cases can be countered by being wary and not believing each and everything that is posted on social media, but rather demanding proof of any statements posted.

Conclusion

Politicians should indeed use social media as it enhances service delivery. In present times, social media is the best way to reach the majority of the voters. After all, the number of people reading newspapers daily keeps dwindling, while the populous using social media keeps rising to the billions. Furthermore, continued use of online platforms encourages accountability among politicians who can constantly report their development progress to the voters. Such voters can then express their satisfaction or the lack of it hence promoting democracy. Although social media use by politicians has few shortcomings, overall, it is one of the best things ever to happen to democracy and governance.

References

Engesser, S., Ernst, N., Esser, F., & Büchel, F. (2017). Populism and social media: How politicians spread a fragmented ideology. Information, communication & society, 20(8), 1109-1126.

Graber, D. A., & Dunaway, J. (2017). Mass media and American politics. Cq Press.