The Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, MP, (left) and Canadian MP Mr Russ Hiebert (right) led discussions in the effect of the social media on politics.
A force for good Describing the social media as a huge source of information with enormous potential to inform and connect people, Dr the Hon. P.J. Kurien, MP, Deputy Chairperson of India’s Rajya Sabha, said YouTube, Facebook and other such media empower and unite people. Political leaders can raise social and political issues and shape public opinion, and the media can give a voice to those who previously did not have one. With connections to billions of
people, and reaching millions of users daily, they make more information available to people than ever before, remove barriers to collective action and promote pluralism. As they are more widely used by young people, Dr Kurien saw them as a way to engage youth in politics. He encouraged policy-makers,
political parties and MPs to use the new media to better understand the views and needs of the people, and
to use it to reach the people with more information which he said will in turn re-inforce public trust in the role MPs are playing on the people’s behalf. It will also provide them with the information they need to hold their representatives accountable in a more transparent system of governance. While the public can use the social
media to influence political debate, he said they can also be used by political parties to mobilize voters. More generally, the social media can also be used to enable faster responses to crises. But he also encouraged caution in
the use of the social media. Much of the information being disseminated is anonymous and can be dangerous and misleading. Domination by special interests and people expert only in communications is also easy.
Challenging perspectives A Canadian MP took a different
position, urging MPs to understand the social media better to use it more effectively. Mr Russ Hiebert, MP, noted the
social media focus on celebrity gossip, so MPs can use their own celebrity status to focus attention on political policies and programmes, to answer questions and to respond to the needs of voters. Public expectations of participation, accountability and transparency are rising, as is social media use, so MPs can use them to improve their visibility and build support, as well as to raise funds, encourage voters to go to the polls and get responses on issues from stakeholders. Using Members’ celebrity status enables them to put politics at the forefront in the public eye, exchange information and enable constituents to see that politicians are active, real people who are working for them. He added that the traditional
media also follow politicians on the
social media so material Members post of the social media can get them news coverage as well. Mr Hiebert said that the Obama
presidential campaign in the 2008 United States elections had more than 13 million addresses it could use to contact voters and get them out to vote. The campaign found the social media could also be used to solicit donations, especially small donations. The Canadian MP advised that
the internet should be integrated into all political activities. Members should claim their names on social media sites before others do and use their names to misrepresent them. Social media sites should be monitored and updated continually to show that the Member is up to date, relevant, active and responsive. Members should link their sites to other community sites, which they should select with care to show their involvement in their community. And sites they use and are linked to should be monitored