Does the personalization of publics strengthen or undermine democratic participation and public debate?

The American journalist A.J. Liebling once said “Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one” (New Yorker, May 14, 1960, p. 109, paywall), this quote exemplifies our world. Social media alters the manner individuals interact with each other by contributing to more convenience. With social networking sites, it is faster and easier to get in touch with people. With a push of the Facebook button on the top left corner, the news feed is refreshed, providing up to date information on what is happening. Finding new individuals is quick, as Facebook recommends users with common interests and mutual friends.

The “public sphere” is usually planned because the social house wherever totally different opinions are expressed, problems with general concern are mentioned, and collective solutions are communicatively developed.Those forms of meeting weren’t terribly eminent due to the restricted range of individuals reached. On the opposite hand, in our digital/news era, it became abundant easier for folks to speak across regions, inside hours an enormous movement are often created, and therefore the goals are set. Participants don’t even need to meet to arrange, it all happens through a gaggle chat on a social media platform, and thru shares and posts on the platform they will reach thousands if not voluminous folks inside a brief amount of your time.

The political scenery has changed a lot in the last couple of decades due to the internet. Social media, specifically, plays a big role in political campaigns and in the way people perceive conflicts.

Politicians and their supporters regularly upload posts on social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter. Each political party currently has its own social networking sites, from which it publicizes biased information and call for donations. Let us take a peek at some of the most important ways that social media has been influencing politics with recently.

The use of social media in politics including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube has boldly changed the way campaigns are run and how individuals interact with their selected officials.

The opportunity for voters to interact more easily with candidates and elected officials is one of the positive effects that social media has on politics. Traditionally, you would have to attend a live event if you wanted to meet a politician or candidate. Not everyone can do that. It is now possible to attend virtual events with modern technology where you can participate in live streaming events and interact with politicians and candidates.

The prevalence of social media in politics has increased accountability and accessibility to voters for elected officials and candidates for public office.And the ability to publish content and broadcast it instantly to millions of people allows campaigns to manage the images of their candidates carefully in real time and at almost no cost based on rich sets of analytics.

Nothing positive will take off from faux news. It’s corrupting the important story and it’s participating folks with the incorrect info. however social media generally has alleviated the communication between folks and has provided them with the data they’re seeking. It created a voice to anyone World Health Organization needs to be detected and it alleviated the method. It rose a public area for folks to complain, to share their happiness, their disappointment, and their pain. It gave them the chance to protest and to assist solve political, social and economical issues. Giving the instance of the “You stink” Lebanese movement. It launched as a Facebook account and had folks protest for the rubbish that was filling the streets of Beirut. It extremely gave folks the hope of a modification and a voice that was move between all ages and it gave them the ability to talk.

Social media has helped a lot to bring attention to some situations. However, many things that remain unclear to an extent are determining this. First, if they can reach more people, the amount of followers a person gives them an upper hand. Secondly, algorithmic determinations of what is still up in the air and what is not up. Third, in social media, bots play an enormous role. Bots can be used for many things ; they are used for propaganda pushing and a lot of time to help specific politicians

In the end, social networking sites has made it less difficult for human beings to communicate. And, multifarious social issues have perished due to social media such as homosexuality. It’s additionally a very hazardous device that gets into our displays and our minds. To believe what is fake, it is brain washing us and it is hiding the other facet of the story. It’s a very taboo concern and it continues to get worse with the memories that we get each day and continues to get better than the consumer.

References :

Stan, A. (2018). Are algorithms hacking our thoughts? https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/20/are-algorithms-hacking-our-thoughts/

Fuchs, C. (2013). Social Media: A Critical Introduction. SAGE.