12 Mar 2019

Social media, especially Facebook, has increasingly become popular as a source of information for many people nowadays.

It seems some people even prefer to browse for news from social media instead of the mainstream media.

Keoagile Tlhobogang, a 32-year-old resident of Lobatse is one of those who believe in social media.

She explained recently in an interview that she has found herself more and more attracted to social media and slowly turning her back on traditional media.

She said information shared on social media was valuable and relevant, adding that in social media platforms, people get news at their own time provided they have Internet access.

“The kind of news people get on social media are sometimes news that you cannot get from traditional media like television and radio. When I want to know current affairs, I simply grab my phone,” she said.

Sharing the same sentiments, 38-year-old Wangu Mothibedi said social media did not only give hard news, but also gave social news as well.

He said what fascinated him the most was its ability to stimulate people’s views and opinions.

Elaborating further, he said social media gave the reader or viewer the platform to comment on what they saw or read, adding that through that, people were able to say what they believed in and make decisions on what was shared on the platform.

He said the social media evolution had gotten to a point where people would abandon television because even broadcasts were done on the platforms.

“To be able to see what other people think about a certain event or story also empowers one and allows them to redirect their thoughts on a certain matter,” he said.

Mothibedi said although he still appreciated traditional medium like radio, he only tuned in for music.

He said life was fast and there was no time to sit down and tune in for news on television.

He said he found  out that social media, especially Facebook, carried all the news one needed to know, adding that “even newspaper companies these days have online sites of which one can login if they want to read  news.”

“When you have Internet access, you basically have the world in your hands,” Mothibedi added.

He said of all the social media platforms, he liked Facebook more because it broght the world closer together.

“I find it fascinating when I am able to read what Donald Trump says and voice my opinion on the comment section,” he said.

However, Daniel Keatlaretse, 56, has a different view.

He said he appreciated social media but expressed worry over some users who abused the freedom of speech on social media platforms by insulting others, adding that it accommodated verbal abuse by some users.

He said he has been using Facebook for only two years, but that he still found traditional media relevant as he still watched television and listened to radio.

He said traditional media would always be relevant to many people because “you don’t have to spend any money on data bundles to be able to connect to the Internet.“ ENDS