As a political party, we cannot afford to disregard the contributions and responsibilities that social media, including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter, play in Ghana’s general elections.
The importance of social media in our election cannot be overstated.
However, as a political party, we must systematize our social media communications in the same manner that mainstream media has done for years in order to achieve our goals using this technology platform that is quickly becoming an integral part of our election communication materials.
During the 2020 COVID19 general elections, young people were clearly motivated by political issues; hence, social media is a significant enabler of citizen engagement in the democratic process. Using social media as a communication tool, political parties may utilise social media and its highly visible environment to promote the party’s viewpoint, explain their policies and goals, and interact directly with their supporters, bypassing the mainstream media.
Unquestionably, the advent of social media has brought about the most significant and ubiquitous transformation to communication in recent times. Social media is the strongest stimulus for information dissemination in the twenty-first century, as indicated by the greater spontaneity of political events than ever before. Therefore, the advent of social media has been touted as revolutionary in all realms of human endeavour, including public policy engagement. Since social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and others were utilised to support political engagement and campaigning in Ghana’s presidential elections in 2020, they have risen to prominence in politics throughout the nation due to their unmatched capacity for enhancing political communication. 𝘈𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦, 𝘈. (2013). 𝘋𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺: 𝘈𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘺 & 𝘚𝘰𝘯𝘴.
Today’s news consumers get their information through social media. As a consequence, social media platforms have not only become significant news distribution channels, but they have also maintained a prominent role in the news’s effective communication.
As a result, these platforms are popular news channels since they not only have a powerful and influential voice, but also allow for direct connection and input with the target audience.
A study conducted in 2022 showed that 71% of web users turn to Facebook and WhatsApp for political news. Increased usage of social media platforms is partly attributable to their capacity to facilitate quick distribution of political information and promote political involvement. What is social media’s potential? How are social media used for political purposes? How extensively do political leaders in Ghana use social media for political campaigns?
For more practical analysis, find a copy of my research work titled “𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗚𝗜𝗖 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗣𝗧𝗔𝗖𝗟𝗘 𝗢𝗡 𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗔 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗣𝗔𝗧𝗥𝗜𝗢𝗧𝗜𝗖 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗬’𝗦 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠 𝗔𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗗 𝗢𝗙 𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰” – 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗞 𝗢𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗜
info.markofori@gmail.com
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