Abstract

The immediacy of social media gives citizens the ability to monitor real-world events and security issues and get immediate feedback that can help shape their responses and priorities, which can also be valuable in promoting security in general. Through its constant use, social media has played a significant role in fostering both positive and negative facets of insecurity. Therefore, this study investigated use of social media platforms and engagement in citizens’ journalism regarding security challenges in Nigeria among The Polytechnic Ibadan Students. The study adopted descriptive survey research design; multi-stage sampling procedure was adopted in the sample selection of 403 respondents. A validated instrument named; Citizen Journalism Social Media Questionnaire(r=0.874) was used for data collection; data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings revealed that students of The Polytechnic Ibadan made use of popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp (weighted x̄ 1.40) respectively and engaged in online discussion of security challenges to a large extent using Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Telegram, and others (weighted x̄ 2.11). Also, there was no significant difference (r = 0.053, p<0.05) in level of engagement in online discussion on security challenges in Nigeria. Thus, the study concluded that The Polytechnic Ibadan students’ social media use does not have any influence on security challenges in Nigeria. The study recommended that security information should be promptly disseminated virtually by security operatives to avoid spreading of fake security news through social media platforms.

Keywords: Use, Engagement, Social Media, Security Challenges

Impact Statement

The freedom to communicate and exchange knowledge with everyone on the planet, or with a large number of people at once, is the strength of social media. The role and impact of technology have come to stay, a multitude of tech-enabled practices can be used as part of social media, and such activities include picture posting, tweeting, social gaming, social networks, video sharing, business networks, virtual environments, feedback, and several other practices.  Even governments and politicians use social media to communicate with constituents and voters according to Pew Research Centre 2021, the media, which is important in the global war against terrorism and insecurity, has been used to fuel various types of terrorism and other illegal acts. This study investigated The Polytechnic Ibadan Students’ Use of Social Media Platforms for Citizen Journalism on Security Challenges in Nigeria. 

About Author/s

Dr Adekunle Olusola Otunla is a senior lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication and Media Technology, Faculty of Communication and Information Sciences, Lead City University; where he is currently teaching Broadcast Media and Communication Technology, as well as conducting multidisciplinary research in media education and culture, applied communication technology, health promotion and advocacy and has been a teacher, researcher, and university administrator for over two decades in Nigeria’s public and private universities. Dr. Otunla has published extensively with over a hundred publications in diverse areas of research interest which cuts across media technology, mass communication, films, popular culture, and intercultural/religious studies. He is a regular host of an early morning daily devotional broadcast “Insights for Success” on Lead City 89.1FM Ibadan Nigeria.

Ayomide Abraham is a quality compliance officer in the Postgraduate College, Lead City University, Ibadan, Nigeria who has undergone training in Human Resource Management and has achieved basic office and administrative skills from her current profession along with organizational skills, management skills, communication skills, time management skills, during her current professional position. She is also a specialist in Microsoft Office and recently she attended and participated in a two-week international multidisciplinary faculty program on Advancement in pedagogical sciences and research, jointly organized by the International Council for Education Research and Training (ICERT) and INM PG College Meerut India in 2023.

Cite this Article

APA (7th ed.): Otunla, A. O., & Abraham, A. O. (2024). Use of Social Media Platforms for Citizen Journalism on Security Challenges in Nigeria among The Polytechnic Ibadan Students. Edumania-An International Multidisciplinary Journal, 2(3), 12–25. https://doi.org/10.59231/edumania/9052

Chicago (17th ed.): Otunla, Adekunle Olusola, and Ayomide Oluwaseun Abraham. “Use of Social Media Platforms for Citizen Journalism on Security Challenges in Nigeria among The Polytechnic Ibadan Students.” Edumania-An International Multidisciplinary Journal 2, no. 3 (2024): 12–25. https://doi.org/10.59231/edumania/9052.

MLA (9th ed.): Otunla, Adekunle Olusola, and Ayomide Oluwaseun Abraham. “Use of Social Media Platforms for Citizen Journalism on Security Challenges in Nigeria among The Polytechnic Ibadan Students.” Edumania-An International Multidisciplinary Journal, vol. 2, no. 3, 2024, pp. 12–25. https://doi.org/10.59231/edumania/9052.

Statements & Declarations

Peer Review: The academic rigor and contribution of this research on citizen journalism and social media use have been validated through a rigorous and independent peer-review process conducted by experts in the discipline.

Review Type: This manuscript was reviewed under a double-blind peer review model. This process, administered by the editorial team, ensured that the identities of the authors (Adekunle Olusola Otunla and Ayomide Oluwaseun Abraham) and the reviewers were kept confidential from one another. The review was conducted by subject experts in mass communication, media studies, citizen journalism, and security studies.

Competing Interests: The authors, Adekunle Olusola Otunla and Ayomide Oluwaseun Abraham, jointly and individually declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Data Availability: The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author, A.O. Otunla, upon reasonable request. The data are not publicly available due to privacy and confidentiality agreements with the participating students from The Polytechnic Ibadan.

Funding: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. The work was completed using the authors’ institutional resources at Lead City University, Ibadan, and personal scholarly efforts.

License: This article is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) 4.0 International License. This license permits copying and redistribution of the material in any medium or format for non-commercial purposes only, provided the original work is properly cited, and it does not permit adaptation or remixing of the material.

Ethical Approval: All procedures performed in this study involving human participants (Polytechnic students) were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee. Ethical approval for this research was granted by the Institutional Ethics Committee of Lead City University, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria, where both authors are affiliated. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study, and their anonymity and confidentiality have been strictly maintained.

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