Global Natters’ last edition of 2021/2022 was held on Thursday 21st of July at the Secret Garden Cafe in Bute Park (Cardiff).
This time the discussion was centred on how social media affects our society. The session started by commenting on an article focused on how the social media platform, Tik Tock, has contributed to misinformation during the Kenyan elections. Later, the conversation moved to argue about the more general repercussions of social media by analysing the input of David Bowie’s interview.
While the general agreement in the group was that social media is a source of fake news or/and a tool for governments to control their population, some participants, also noted that in the past, these could have had a certain benefit for people. In those countries where states had firm control over mainstream media, the internet can provide freer and more secure spaces for people to explain their stories and escape from propaganda. For instance, it was commented on social media’s role when organising protests during the Arab Spring.
Notwithstanding, as noted by one of the participants, nowadays these could not be replicated that easily. Governments have witnessed and realised the power of the internet and social platforms. Consequently, they have now developed their new skills and increased their capacity to influence and control the online world.
The evening concluded with a goodbye from the Global Natters’ organiser, Chris Marinov, who will be leaving the WCIA volunteers’ team next September and handing over the event’s organisation to future volunteers.