OVer the last few years, social media has become more and more integrated into many aspects of our daily lives. It’s not just changing the way we communicate, but also the way we do business, the way we are governed, and the way we live.
When one mentions social media, names like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat and more, jump right up. There are no limits to who uses social media.
Almost everyone has a social media account these days. Whether one is a teenager, the man-on-the street, a prime minister or the president of a nation, social media is the way to communicate with everyone.
Among the hottest tweets in the social media world is that of the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama, within his final hours of presidency a few days ago.
His tweet, “It’s been the honour of my life to serve you. You made me a better leader and a better man”, garnered 1.5 million likes and well over 600,000 re-tweets.
The Twitter-in-chief as he is known, Obama certainly had everyone’s attention. He was the world leader who innovated with technology. It was even reported that his use of the social media in his political campaign for president and after over the years was his slingshot to success.
Our very own Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is also among the rank of world leaders who use Twitter to connect with fellow Malaysians at home and abroad.
He has more than 3.2 million
followers today. He even visited
the Twitter headquarters in Market Street, San Francisco, in 2013,
for briefings on the impact of social media on government service delivery.
Corporate and chief executive officers (CEOs) are joining the social media hubs. AirAsia Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes showed how social media could be an effective leadership tool, both in good and bad times. During the 2014 AirAsia Indonesia crash, he managed the crisis through social media, tweeting words of comfort and inspiration to bereaved families.
I consider social media an extremely powerful medium with unlimited possibilities. Whether one is tweeting or using Facebook to communicate, there is a sense of personal connection and attention that the world craves today.
When used in positive ways, social media engages worldwide connectivity. It allows real-time information sharing. It also allows commonality of interest where one can interact with those who share your interest.
Without a doubt, there is no faster way to send out news than through the social media. That is why many leaders of the world should consider social media as part of their leadership and responsibility to the world.
Social media allows everyone to be more approachable and personal in sharing updates and comments daily. It allows us to reach out to one another across the thousands of kilometres just with our smartphones or laptops. It also allows the public to share and feedback their thoughts and comments to leaders of the world.
However, the social media world “ain’t always sunshine and rainbows”. When used in negative ways, it can cause backlash. Words or images on social media can almost never be retrieved in full. Once news is shared on social media and goes viral, the spread is like a bush fire.
Leaders of nations who use social media need to consider carefully the statements they make and asses every nuance in the message they wish to convey, as what they post will be read by millions of users around the globe. The responsibility of leaders when using social media is magnified thousand-folds more than average users.
One should know that the Internet never sleeps, and neither do social media blunders. When the Justice Department of the United States tweeted “CNN is the biggest troll of them all, lmao” (which referred to the coverage of Melania Trump’s speech) from its official account, it sparked a controversy of an intent attack on CNN.
Although the tweet was quickly deleted and the department clarified that it was for a personal account and did not represent the department’s view, it was too late.
Thousands had read the tweet and probably shared it.
The social media platform can also be used to demoralise or tarnish others and initiate cyberbullying. If too much personal information is revealed, there is also the risk of fraud or identity theft.
The social media is as good as the user makes it. Use it wisely with positive intentions. For leaders of nations and heads of organisations, their success depends on their ability to have profound conversations with constituents and staff.
In today’s web-connected world, that means taking advantage of the communication tools available — the social media — to meet and connect, in particular, with members of the young, savvy generation.
Ahmad Kushairi is editor of BOTs, the weekly tech section in ‘Life &Times’. Trained in Math, he has since traded his problem-solving skills with
writing about how tech has helped to transform the world for the better