EVLUATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA NEGATIVE SPEECH AND IMPLICATION ON VOTERS BEHAVIOUR

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study The flexibility of information sharing afforded by recent breakthroughs in ICT has broken the interaction constraints associated with traditional mass media, opening up new options for citizen political involvement. The media is an undeniably powerful and quick mode of communication. It has a tremendous effect on education, politics, culture, and social cohesion, in addition to appealing to a huge audience. It is not a new issue to discuss the role of new media in political discourse, mobilization, and education. As a result of its use as a means for distributing political messages to potential voters, some researchers have identified social media as a facilitator of political activity. Others have emphasized social media as a medium used by citizens, particularly young people, to get political information, remain current on political events, and engage in the political process (Yang & DeHart 2016). Today's social media has changed the world into a "global village," with quick knowledge dissemination transcending time and geographic barriers (Andreadis & Chadjipadelis 2015). Social media has gradually become an indispensable tool for influencing society, and its impact is purely due to its social qualities of interaction and engagement. The importance of social media on voters' political and cultural attitudes cannot be exaggerated as it expands in popularity and reach. In today's world, social media effectively transforms how people interact, communicate, and make judgments about social, cultural, and political issues. Social media has become a powerful medium that may affect voting behaviour due to its capacity to provide rapid and inexpensive access to the production and consumption of current information in any part of the world without editorial vetting (Ladd, & Lenz 2018). Social media not only offers information about political affiliations, candidates, and party manifestos, but it also allows voters from all over the world to relate to and interact with one another about issues impacting these politicians. According to Andreadis and Chadjipadelis (2015), virtually every political party in the country uses social media to campaign and promote their ideas, messages, and manifestos to followers, including advertising, mobilisation, and organisation in all 50 states, as well as finance. Facebook, YouTube, and, notably, Twitter were used to enlighten voters about how each political party or candidate felt about crucial national issues ranging from security to power. As a result, social media became powerful enough to influence voter decisions and choices, as many people who had already made up their minds and consciences to vote for a particular party or candidate began to change their minds based on facts or ideas they found online about the party or candidate. The information gained by a particular voter was also not static, as the same voter would use different online tools and buttons to broadcast the same message to other voters similar to him via media such as blogs, Facebook, chat rooms, and so on in order to influence them. M artinez, Gagliardore, and Gal. (2015) claim that, despite the positive benefits of social media, it has been seen that social media has aided untrustworthy sources of information, fake news, and bad mouthing, particularly during election seasons. negative speech in Nigerian politics may not be an altogether new political polarising tool employed by political players. Its domineering influence on the political system and the implications that follow, before, during, and after elections, cannot be overstated and should be of great concern to all stakeholders. The goal of every negative speech is neitherfar-fetched or dissimilar to what every political propagandist strives to achieve during an election campaign. It is primarily intended to bring into disrepute or ridicule the personality of contending political opponents, so that public opinion towards such perceived opponents is negatively influenced and swayed to the advantage of the perpetrators. Unfortunately, the mass media, particularly social media, are used in fanning the embers of fire of these ill-conceived, premeditated discords deliberately sown by politicians in their desperate efforts to gain power. 1.2 Statement of the problem The use of negative speech to gain electorate support before elections has grown commonplace in Nigerian politics. Schieb and Preuss (2016) observed that with the advent of social media, which has been described as democratic because of its users' unrestricted access to send and receive information, political campaigns have become more or less an avenue for peddling deliberate falsehood against perceived opponents. Politicians in Nigeria are always engaged in a war of wits as they compete for the minds of the electorate on whom their election win is dependent. According to Dauda, Abubakar, and Lawan (2017), politicians sometimes go for the opponent's jugular using social media and propaganda. Due to its democratic and unregulated nature, unlike traditional mass media, social media has become an avenue used by politicians to spread propaganda against real or imagined opponents in order to gain voter support. negativeful message content, on the other hand, varies and can attack anyone, regardless of their status, identity, region, and so on. Even if negative speech does not result in a negative-motivated crime, the harm is done: victims are stereotyped, stigmatized, and subjected to negative images. Persons or groups of individuals may be dehumanized as a result of the overall implications of internet hatred. Against this backdrop the study seeks to assessing the implications of negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign on voters. 1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The major of this study is to critically assess the implications of negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign on voters. By extension, this study will specfically; 1. Find out the extent the social media is being used for political campaigns in Nigeria. 2. Investigate the extent voters participate in electioneering campaigns carried out on social media. 3. Ascertain the prevalence of negative speech on social media during online campaigns in Nigeria. 4. Ascertain the extent negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria. 5. Ascertain how negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria. 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION 1. What extent is the social media used for political campaigns in Nigeria? 2. What is the extent voters participate in electioneering campaigns carried out on social media? 3. What is the prevalence of negative speech on social media during online campaigns in Nigeria? 4. What is the extent negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria? 5. In what ways does negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affect voters in Nigeria? 1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES Ho1: The social media is not used for political campaigns in Nigeria. Ha1: The social media is used for political campaigns in Nigeria. Ho2: The prevalence of negative speech on social media during online campaigns in Nigeria is low. Ha2: The prevalence of negative speech on social media during online campaigns in Nigeria is high. Ho3: The extent negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria is low. Ha3: The extent negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria is high. 1.6 Significance of the study This study is partly geared towards stressing the importance of engaging the youth through social media by political stakeholders. It hints on choosing appropriate, cost effective and alternative communication strategies that take advantage of technological advancement to expand reach and utilize platforms where target audience (youth) spend their time. This study will be fundamental to government/Policy Makers and Politicians to be prepared to demonstrate the invasive nature of the Internet and specifically, social media sites, as a medium warranting regulation. This will be particularly essential in the face of judicial challenges to the proposed rules, which are undoubtedly likely to arise. This will enhance policy formulation and ensure that well meaning policies are tailored to meet the needs of the people. To electorates, this study will sensitize the youth on the dichotomy that exists between online and offline political participation. This will encourage the youth to match online political participation with requisite offline actions to effect desired political change. Academically, the findings of this study will add more knowledge to the existing literature on media effect theories and public relations. It will also serve as a reference for future researchers that may want to undertake a research on a similar study. 1.7 Scope of the Study The scope of this study borders on the implications of negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign on voters. By extension, this study will specfically find out the extent the social media is being used for political campaigns in Nigeria, investigate the extent voters participate in electioneering campaigns carried out on social media, ascertain the prevalence of negative speech on social media during online campaigns in Nigeria, ascertain the extent negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria and ascertain how negative speech on social media during electioneering campaign affects voters in Nigeria. The study is however delimited to social media users in Portharcourt metropolis, Rivers State. 1.8 Limitation of the Study This research project, like all human endeavors, had some challenges that threatened to derail the study's completion. One of the reasons is that the time allotted for this work was so limited that the researcher did not have enough time to complete the task thoroughly. During data collection, the researcher also had to put forth extra effort to understand the respondents' interview schedules, several of whom fell into the incomprehensible age group. Also, there were financial and transportation constraints to deal with. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire, interview).