Rosie Turp asks is social media good or bad for democracy?

Is social media good or bad for democracy?

Political participation is truest through voting in elections and being a member of political party. Political participation includes a broad range of activities through which people develop and express their opinions on the world and how it is governed. Over the last 30 years voting in elections of membership parties has dropped considerably but other forms of political participation have gone up like social media and e-petitions. While increased participation on social media is good, especially for increasing political awareness, it cannot be used as a substitute for voting or political participation.

Although, for people to govern themselves, they need to have the information that social media provides. Thus, without social media platforms, doing this would be more challenging. Correspondingly, when democracies are operating appropriately, people’s sufferings and encounters are not entirely isolated matters. Social media platforms help us alert one another to thousands of multiple issues, and the existence of social media can stimulate citizens to pursue solutions on the matters. Therefore, social media is good for democracy.

Conversely, social media can spread false reports (“fake news”) on democracy, and as a result of this, an increase in polarisation, extremism and fragmentation. For people that live in an information cocoon, many things that are false are believed and will fail to learn countless things that are true. For example, we have seen nations and politicians, such as Russia, seeking to interrupt democratic interests, using social media to promote these interests. Hence, social media has negative effect on democracy.

Social media amp up moral and emotional messages while organising people into digital communities based on tribal conflicts creating a filter bubble which keeps people’s opinions polarised. Polarisation is therefore bad for 2 reasons. Firstly, no parties cover the centre, such as you have Conservatives on the right and Labour on the left and no party representing the centre. Secondly, there is no cooperation or compromise, so they just veto each other, especially in America.

To conclude, due to evidence provided, social media is bad for democracy because fake news and polarisation brainwashes people into thinking untrue or dangerous views, effecting democracy on a large scale.

 

By Rosie Turp