Social media for diffusion of conflict & violence in Ethiopia: Beyond gratifications

Abstract

This study explored the use of social media among the Ethiopian youth at the time of the political reform. The study employed an explanatory sequential design. Using an online questionnaire, the quantitative data were gathered from 412 university students who were pursuing their education in eight major cities of the country. For the qualitative data, in-depth interviews were conducted with 35 students in four places of the research area. The survey data was discussed using descriptive statistics while data from the in-depth interviews were discussed thematically. This research discerns that the youth had unshakeable loyalty to Telegram (96 %) while they are also dominantly using YouTube (nearly 79 %), Facebook (65 %) and Instagram (53.7 %). It is also discovered that the youths showed a high level of trust on social media (70 %) virtually on par with their faith in their friends (77.4 %) and teachers (72 %) where their entire trust in social media is governed by selective trust mechanism. The entire dependence the youths had on this mechanism, which is exacerbated by the social media algorithm, led to high level of like and share of posts including unproved stories and misinformation which in turn lead to the diffusion of conflict and violence in a vicious cycle. By shedding new light on how members of a collective culture could use the media to achieve group-oriented goals, the study also refutes the widespread view, which predominantly ties UGT (Use and Gratification Theory) with self-oriented aspirations. This study recommends the enhancement of media literacy by incorporating it in the schools curricula and providing media literacy education to the public using various channels of communication (including both mainstream and new media).