Politics in the Time of Gen-Z

Social media has impacted our lives positively, "no doubt." Some are likely to say it has made life a lot easier for us, thereby providing us with different information, both the fake and the real, which sometimes is very hard to differentiate. People use social media for different purposes: some use social media just for the sole purpose of creating content "because of the financial benefits derived" while there are others that use social media just to stay informed and not to be deformed.

The world of social media has evolved so massively that we can find everything in the online space; no secret can be hidden under the sun again. That alone has brought about this topic of discussion, "social media and politics." Before now, the issues of politics were only discussed in newspapers, which is why, back in the day, you'd see our fathers purchasing newspapers every day just to know the activities that were going on in their nation.

Another avenue was the news that was read on the television and radio channels; permit me to ask this: "Does radio still exist?'' Oh, I know now. I think the radio still exists, but currently, they built it inside a thing called an "MP3 player." It's a nice world we live in. Back to the topic again. With the world today, I don't think people still read newspapers who does that when literally eighty percent of the world owns a smartphone?

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Having a smartphone is one thing while having social media platforms is another thing that can't be traded for anything else, with social media you can find any information you are looking for though some might possess fake information then "all news na news" we just have to be smart enough to know which is real and differentiate it from the fake.

Talking about politics, currently, politics is everywhere, even in social media, and it's even widespread. I know the sole purpose of the internet is to circulate news by providing information, and social media has the veto power of misinterpreting that information for their interest. That is the major reason we are experiencing political corruption in the online space.

Social media has been used as a medium for politicians to conduct political campaigns to reach large audiences. Putting such things on the interest is gonna attract a lot of viewers, and with the world, most people don't have the time to go for the physical campaign, so carrying it out on social media is gonna reach the likes of those people, and they are likely to make certain contributions as well.

The use of social media in politics has its positive and negative aspects but for a nation like mine, the first thing our leaders would consider is how to make money from it because they don't care about the citizens all they are thinking of "is the money" social media has a good effect on politics and I don't think I would like to change that. Even if I want to change anything, it would be the spreading of fake news to gain relevance.

Social media plays a vital role in modern politics by bringing information to our doorstep; while it has democratized information dissemination and enhanced transparency, it also presents the challenges of misinformation. At every point, it's our responsibility to understand the multifaceted impact of social media on politics, which is essential for leveraging its benefits while mitigating its risks.

Thanks for reading 🧡