From Cambridge Analytica to ‘O To Ge’ (Enough is Enough): The Dynamics of Political Canvassing and Elections in a Social Media Environment

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue XII, December 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

From Cambridge Analytica to ‘O To Ge’ (Enough is Enough): The Dynamics of Political Canvassing and Elections in a Social Media Environment

Prof. Dr. Kemal Ozden, Abubakar Rakiya Tanko
Department of Political Science and International Relations, Nile University of Nigeria

Abstract: – This study examined the socio-political dynamics surrounding the use of digital and social media platforms in political canvassing. Specifically, the research explored the platforms’ prospects for promotion of dialogue between elected officials and the population; as well as mass voter engagement. The prospects were however observed to be marred by challenges such as the implication on political reality arising out of the spread of fake news in social media; as well as the nuances of government regulation and oversight of social media platforms and its effects on privacy and civil liberties. These nuances were deconstructed using case studies of President Obama’s use of digital platforms to bypass traditional media and engage directly with youths during the 2008 American presidential elections; Russia’s influence operations via deployment of fake social media accounts to affect the outcome of the 2016 American presidential elections; and the datamining efforts of Cambridge Analytica, the British political consulting company, in gauging perceptions towards generation of targeted messaging to affect the outcome of the same election. Other case studies explored included President Trump’s use of Tweeter to shape the political narrative in his own image as well as the ‘O to Ge’ (Enough is Enough) movement in Kwara State, Nigeria – amplified to epic proportions via social media – reflected a political earthquake of seismic proportions in demystifying the Saraki political dynasty. It was concluded that while social media holds out promises of greater political engagement, it nevertheless holds greater danger to aspects of civil liberties and political reality arising from the medium’s sheer ubiquity.

Key words: Digital platforms, social media, political canvassing, political engagement, Civil Liberties, ‘O To Ge’.

I. INTRODUCTION

Numbers and figures play a significant role in politics. The ‘numbers’ in this instance refers to the quantum of the enabling weight/force/pressure or an amalgam of these and several other dynamics which lead to the imposition of the vested political interests of an individual/group over other individuals/groups within the context of a nation at a particular given time. However, while the addictive nature of politics, which could be likened to be the opium of the masses – apologies to Marx’s (1844, p. 1) opinion of religion being the opium of the people, is not in doubt, its (i.e. politics) appeal mainly lies in its innate manipulative ability to channel the mass populace’ addiction towards the attainment of the political goals of vested interest groups in the society.

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