Role of Social Media Use in Democracy

Abstract

Social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and Google hold the potential to alter civic  engagement, thus essentially hijacking democracy, by influencing individuals towards  a particular way of thinking. Today, social media plays a crucial role in facilitating and  transmitting content related to all the matters that have larger effect on public opinions and  democracy. Due to higher use of social media among new generations, they are exposed to  politics more frequently, and in a way that is integrated into their social lives. New media  hailed as vehicles for providing a voice to the voiceless. But the restrictions imposed by the  government on social media sites and internet services, while allowing only that content that  are government friendly amounts to compelled speech. This paper explores how social media  have become a platform for fake news and propaganda to influence certain audiences towards  a particular way of thinking. When it comes to healthy democratic networks, it is important  that the news remains true so it doesn’t affect people levels of trust. A certain amount of trust  is very crucial for healthy and well-functioning democratic systems.