PETALING JAYA: Voters are advised to fact-check information they obtain from social media platforms, as most almost always lack accuracy.
Universiti Teknologi Mara School of Communication and Media senior lecturer Datuk Prof Dr Ismail Sualman said social media is simply part of the medium for information to be disseminated via platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram.
“You can share anything on social media. However, when it comes to trustworthiness of such information, it is quite questionable, mainly because there are no gatekeepers.
“Compared to (traditional) media, there is a structure that controls the flow of news, where editors are in place to check the accuracy of the information before it goes out.”
He said his research on voter behaviour in previous elections shows that social media can create awareness among the public about the current situation, latest news and political scenario.
“Seventy-five percent of voters, regardless of age, referred to social media platforms to look for information about any political campaign. However, in terms of influencing voters, they would still need traditional media such as newspapers and television to seek truth in the news that they read about,” Ismail said.
“Approximately 55% of voters still rely on traditional media for more accurate news about political campaigns, while another 45% said they prefer to get political news from social media platforms.”
He added that fundamentally, voting behaviour can be influenced by four factors – candidate profile, political party, manifesto and track record of both candidate and the party.
International Islamic University Malaysia associate professor Dr Shafizan Mohamed pointed out that social media was not the ultimate indicator of voter behaviour.
“Despite the importance of social media in information dispersion, Malaysian politics is still bound by culture, race, history and religion that contribute to voting behavior in our country,” she said.
Meanwhile, Dr Noor Nirwandy Mat Noordin from the UiTM Centre of Media and Warfare studies said social media users should train themselves to conduct fact-checks of any information they get from social media and not to be “played” by emotional discourse on social media platforms.
He said although social media offers unlimited access to information, most of the time, the nature of social media is individual-centric, meaning only certain individuals get highlighted.
“We need to be aware that some people on social media carry negative objectives that try to gain advantage and mileage credits by putting up negative information against political parties (they are targeting).”
He advised young voters to be aware of fake news and negative propaganda, which are used to influence the decisions of voters.
“Never get emotionally attached to any political propaganda or negativity fuelled by social media. Young voters need to be aware that most of the strategic campaigns, particularly the negative ones, use representative elements such as colours, hashtags and symbols to influence them,” he said.
kredit: https://www.thesundaily.my/local/verify-political-info-from-social-media-GI10099168
