Naija Generati ration and New Media edia A Conversation - - PDF document

Naija Generati Conversation

Discussion will focus on how new trends engagement and participation in governa

A session of the New Media & Chude Jideonwo (Executive Dir May 15, 2012. Abuja, Nigeria.

ration and New Media

ew trends in entertainment and popular culture can drive new in governance.

a & Governance: Tools & Trends Conference, Director, The Future Project) igeria.

edia – A

drive new levels of youth

ce, moderated by

They’ve got the power… Why were people so angry whe incumbent president on the sam About Us? Youth Debate? Why did Don Jazzy have to apo Jonathan about a year after? Why were there so many celebr from Stephanie Okereke for the Congress of Nigeria? Why are Banky W and perhaps e activism and issue advocacy in N The answer lies at that intersect the place at which citizens unde stardom have over society. ngry when D’banj organised an endorsement conc

• n the same night as Banky W and others were a

ve to apologise for his part in endorsing Presiden er? any celebrities spread out for contestants in the las ke for the People’s Democratic Party to KWAM 1 for perhaps elDee considered one of the strongest fac

• cacy in Nigeria?

t intersection between popular culture and civic eng zens understand the power that celebrity, entertai ment concert for the rs were at the What President Goodluck in the last elections AM 1 for the Action t faces of youth d civic engagement – y, entertainment and

Let’s talk numbers… Nowhere is this power more p media (which are ultimately a st Don Jazzy has 267, 092 follower

• n Twitter.

MI has 155,423, Banky W has 1 barely 22) has 246,590. Naeto C

• n Facebook. It is important to

politicians on Twitter put togeth to worm their ways into hearts a Speaking of hearts and minds, i Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde is infini and issues than any media h fans/friends on Facebook (sh Facebook) she has more follow Punch, The Guardian, The Na Channels TV’s 38, 054, AIT’s 7, 08 er more prominent, possibly more dramatic, than ately a strong driver of the talkability for new med 2 followers on Twitter. His “son” D’banj has 217, 575 y W has 192,411, and Wizkid (whom you must re

• 0. Naeto C has 119, 010 on Twitter and a combine

portant to note that Wizkid has more followers t put together, including the ones who have been wo to hearts and minds of young people. d minds, it is completely possible that the actress e is infinitely more influential when it comes to yo media house in Nigeria. With over 500,000 book (she is the most connected Nigerian ce re followers than five of our top newspapers Nation, The Sun - combined. Even when you 7, 083 and Soundcity’s 54, 514. atic, than on social new media). s 217, 575 followers u must remember is combined 265, 156 llowers than all the e been working hard e actress and singer, mes to young people 000 combined gerian celebrity on apers – Thisday, The when you throw in

“Scourge of our time”? Em… When you come to terms with something they can’t have whi understand why many causes ar why those who aren’t cannot suc New Media have also become th educated, technology-connected

• issues. When popular blogger

attendance, I think it was safe to minds of the young and connecte Of course media like Linda Ike important issues/causes like #A She stands as the most potent

• proliferation. There might be too

rumours and conjecture witho spokesman Reuben Abati has cu immense potential for good an almost limitless. m… rms with the fact that in addition to numbers, sh have which is the emotional authority – then yo causes are falling over themselves for celebrity affi cannot successfully reach the youth audience. become the most effective barometer for judging connected youth – where this Y! generation sta r blogger Linda Ikeji, who attended and def as safe to conclude that the president had lost the d connected population. Linda Ikeji – ordinarily a gossip blogger – have d es like #ABSURape and #SaveOke. st potent symbol of the power of the present p ight be too many blogs and too many social networ ure without consequence and constituting what bati has culled “the essential scourge of our time” r good and as drivers of positive social re-engin mbers, she also has then you begin to lebrity affiliation and judging – at least for ation stand on the and defended the d lost the hearts and have driven very present pop culture al networks spewing ting what president

• ur time” – but their

engineering are

Case studies abound… This combination of celebrity a The Future Awards as far back a between pop culture and develo time in Nigeria in 2010 when E was founded. It is important to note though engagement on governance issu potent campaign that is sadly no Ignored at first by traditional turned to celebrity (Stella Dam and others), and New Media (Tw the protesters had pushed dow media finally took them seriousl largely irrelevant. That pioneering mix would late well as the effective launch of leading the pack at the Ikoyi pro the “Ojota Mega-Jam” in Januar the traction that they did. The What About Us? Debate, lack a massive pull of online media through Cp-Africa.com, YNaija.c national milestone. elebrity and new media for development was far back as 2005; as it was founded right on that and development. But it was used to lethal effect f 10 when Enough is Enough Nigeria, targeting you though that the use of Twitter and Facebook nance issues was first road-tested by #LightUpN is sadly no longer in active operation. aditional media: the founders of Enough is Enou tella Damasus, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, Omawum Media (Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and Ustream). B shed down the gates of the National Assembly, m seriously, but they were late by several weeks, an would later serve the #FuelSubsidyRemoval prote unch of #OccupyNigeria. Without Kate Henshaw an Ikoyi protests and the revolving door of A – Z list c in January, those historic protests would never h ebate, lacking in elaborate funding as it did, also le ine media partnerships and support – from Bell , YNaija.com and Saharareporters.com – to becom was first tested by

• n that intersection

al effect for the first eting young people, Facebook for youth pNigeria, a very h is Enough Nigeria , Omawumi Megbele stream). By the time ssembly, traditional l weeks, and perhaps val protests well as enshaw and Ali Baba Z list celebrity at d never have gained id, also leveraged on from BellaNaija.com to become a major

Watchu gon’ do about it? Surely – there is a reason politic rather than empirical evidence numbers last year, and are st credibility, whether they posit feathers” or not. Of course, it is also important to

• f solving any and all problems,
• r have access to these tools, its

those who can keep up with the But, we know this is a powerful

• had. So the question is – how do

Underline effect – because new m for effective engagement and pa

• n politicians spent hundreds of millions (based on

l evidence, I must quickly add) to drive their so nd are still doing so to shore up their new me hey position themselves as “just another Nigeri portant to know that it is not the “almighty formu problems, and in so far as it is limited to the ability e tools, its impact remains limited to a certain cadr with the rapidly changing information landscape. powerful tool. More powerful than anything else how do we use it to lethal effect for country? use new media is great for a lot of passionate “nois nt and participation; it needs to become more than (based on anecdotal e their social media r new media street er Nigerian ruffling hty formula” capable the ability to possess rtain cadre of youth: ndscape. hing else we’ve ever nate “noise”, yes. But

• re than that.