Social media and politics in Africa : democracy, censorship and security

The smartphone and social media have transformed Africa, allowing people across the continent to share ideas, organise, and participate in politics like never before. While both activists and governments alike have turned to social media as a new form of political mobilization, some African states have increasingly sought to clamp down on the technology, introducing restrictive laws or shutting down networks altogether. Drawing on over a dozen new empirical case studies--from Kenya to Somalia, South Africa to Tanzania--this collection explores how rapidly growing social media use is reshaping politial engagemetn in Africa. But while social media has often been hailed as a liberating tool, the book demonstrates how it has often served to reinforce existing power dynamics, rather than challenge them. Featuring experts from a range of disciplines from across the continent, this collection is the first comprehensive overview of social media and politics in Africa. By examining the historical, political, and social context in which these media platforms are used, the book reveals the profound effects of cyber-activism, cyber-crime, state policing and surveillance on political participation--back cover. Front Cover 1 Praise 2 Half Title 4 About the Editor 5 Title Page 6 Copyright 7 Contents 8 List of illustrations 10 List of contributors 12 Acknowledgements 16 1: Mapping the study of politics and social media use in Africa 18 Social media in Africa: disparities in use 19 Researching social media in Africa 21 Democracy and social media 23 Security, surveillance and social media 26 Note 31 References 31 2: ‘“Igu sawir” gone too far?’ Social media and state reconstruction in Somalia 36 Introduction 36 Social media scholarship and Somalia 38 Conflict and communications technology in Somalia 41 The securitisation of media 45 The state, social media and ‘Somalia rising’ (again) 48 Conclusion 54 Notes 55 References 57 3: ‘We are not just voters, we are citizens’: social media, the #ThisFlag campaign and insurgent citizenship in Zimbabwe 60 Introduction 60 Social media and politics: theoretical reflections 61 Methodology 63 The emergence of the #ThisFlag campaign 65 ‘Logging citizens back on to politics’:11 #ThisFlag protest actions 68 #ThisFlag campaign and the emergent digital spaces of contention 70 Between possibility and constraint: digital media and Zimbabwean politics 74 Conclusion 77 Notes 79 References 80 4: Social media and protest movements in South Africa: #FeesMustFall and #ZumaMustFall 83 Introduction 83 The South African context 85 Methodology 87 Fees Must Fall: #FMF and networked collective action 89 #ZumaMustFall protest campaign 93 Conclusion 96 Notes 98 References 98 5: Enemy collaborators: social imaginaries, global frictions and a gay rights music video in Kenya 101 Introduction 101 Social imaginaries and global frictions 103 Cultural producers and their social imaginaries 104 Enemy collaborators 114 Conclusion 115 Note 117 References 117 6: Between excitement and scepticism: the role of WhatsApp in Sierra Leone’s 2018 elections 122 Introduction 122 Researching social media in Sierra Leone 124 Elections and social media use 126 Political parties and campaigning on social media 128 Party supporters on social media 131 Activism and education 134 Fake news and wariness of social media 136 Donor interest and engagement 139 Conclusion 140 Notes 142 References 143 7: Chaos and comedy: social media, activism and democracy in Senegal 146 Introduction 146 Chapter layout 147 Social media and the election: introducing Africtivistes and Papa Ismaila Dieng 153 Campaign publicity: posters, billboards, and mockery 156 #TuVotesAvecQuoi: talking back to the state 161 The elections: chaos, comedy, social media activists taking charge 164 Conclusion 166 References 167 8: Social media and elections in Nigeria: digital influence on election observation, campaigns and administration 169 Introduction 169 A brief review of elections in Nigeria 170 The social media landscape in Nigeria 171 Political effects of social media 174 Use of social media in Nigerian elections 178 Conclusion 184 Notes 186 References 186 9: From FM radio stations to Internet 2.0 overnight: information, participation and social media in post-failed coup Burundi 190 Introduction 190 The forced and rapid re-configuration of media in Burundi 192 Towards a less inclusive and less democratic (social) media? 198 Filtering information? 206 Conclusion 207 Notes 208 References 209 10: Cybercrime and the policing of politics in Tanzania 212 Introduction 212 Policing politics in Tanzania 213 Policing politics online 216 Challenges of policing social media 222 Conclusion 225 Notes 225 References 226 Legislation cited 230 11: A familiar refrain: political discourse and Facebook use in Mombasa, Kenya 231 Introduction 231 Reframing debate away from questions of access and participation 231 Dominant refrains in political discourse in Mombasa 234 Facebook as a space for public debate 235 Information flows in mainstream media 237 The image of the attentive politician on Facebook 239 Citizen journalism on Facebook 241 Open public discussion and the Facebook group 244 Conclusion 247 Notes 249 References 250 12: Inside the #OperationUsalamaWatch echo chamber: Twitter as site of disruption or elite conversation? 253 Introduction 253 Control and co-option: the intertwined interests of government and media houses in Kenya 255 Social media: democratic platform or elite echo chamber? 257 Kenya’s ‘war on terror’ and Operation Usalama Watch 260 Contesting narratives of Kenya’s ‘war on terror’ in print media 261 The role of elites in framing news coverage and shaping print media debate 264 Similar stories, similar voices: Twitter responds to Operation Usalama Watch 266 Conclusion 271 Note 273 References 273 13: From whispers to the assemblage: surveillance in post-independence East Africa 277 Introduction 277 (Dis)Continuities of surveillance in East Africa: an overview 279 Tracking surveillance in East Africa 283 Surveillance: the East African experiences 287 Conclusion 292 Notes 293 References 294 Postscript: research trajectories in African digital spheres 296 The future of social media research in Africa 296 The importance of this book 299 References 303 Index 306 The smartphone and social media have transformed Africa, allowing people across the continent to share ideas, organise, and participate in politics like never before. While both activists and governments alike have turned to social media as a new form of political mobilization, some African states have increasingly sought to clamp down on the technology, introducing restrictive laws or shutting down networks altogether. Drawing on over a dozen new empirical case studies--from Kenya to Somalia, South Africa to Tanzania--this collection explores how rapidly growing social media use is reshaping political engagement in Africa. But while social media has often been hailed as a liberating tool, the book demonstrates how it has often served to reinforce existing power dynamics, rather than challenge them. Featuring experts from a range of disciplines from across the continent, this collection is the first comprehensive overview of social media and politics in Africa. By examining the historical, political, and social context in which these media platforms are used, the book reveals the profound effects of cyber-activism, cyber-crime, state policing and surveillance on political participation--back cover The smartphone and social media have transformed Africa, allowing people across the continent to share ideas, organise, and participate in politics like never before. While both activists and governments alike have turned to social media as a new form of political mobilization, some African states have increasingly sought to clamp down on the technology, introducing restrictive laws or shutting down networks altogether. Drawing on over a dozen new empirical case studies 2013 from Kenya to Somalia, South Africa to Tanzania 2013 this collection explores how rapidly growing social media use is reshaping political engagement in Africa. But while social media has often been hailed as a liberating tool, the book demonstrates how it has often served to reinforce existing power dynamics, rather than challenge them. Featuring experts from a range of disciplines from across the continent, this collection is the first comprehensive overview of social media and politics in Africa. By examining the historical, political, and social context in which these media platforms are used, the book reveals the profound effects of cyber-activism, cyber-crime, state policing and surveillance on political participation." The smartphone and social media have transformed Africa, allowing people across the continent to share ideas, organise, and participate in politics like never before. While both activists and governments alike have turned to social media as a new form of political mobilization, some African states have increasingly sought to clamp down on the technology, introducing restrictive laws or shutting down networks altogether.0Drawing on over a dozen new empirical case studies - from Kenya to Somalia, South Africa to Tanzania - this collection explores how rapidly growing social media use is reshaping political engagement in Africa. But while social media has often been hailed as a liberating tool, the book demonstrates how it has often served to reinforce existing power dynamics, rather than challenge them.0Featuring experts from a range of disciplines from across the continent, this collection is the first comprehensive overview of social media and politics in Africa. By examining the historical, political, and social context in which these media platforms are used, the book reveals the profound effects of cyber-activism, cyber-crime, state policing and surveillance on political participation