Blame social media for the riots
Author Jay Baer once said: “Content is fire. Social media is gasoline.”
This means whatever message we share or communicate on social media, will spread to various areas and reach different audiences instantly.
As a result, we should not underestimate the incredible power of what we post on social media, as it has the ability to influence opinions.
As South Africa is still reeling from the shocking events that engulfed certain parts of the country, where businesses were looted and infrastructure was torched, let us understand that the flames of this unfortunate fire were partly fuelled by various social media platforms. This means that social media as a communication tool has the ability to disseminate information in an instant, which is sometimes a good thing. But the problem begins when such information is inciteful and encouraging violence and lawlessness.
We have an opportunity to use social media to plead for peace and harmony and to encourage people to uphold the principles of ubuntu.
Let us use social media to foster togetherness, thus saving our society from moral decay.
Malphia Honwane Gottenburg, emanyeleti