Play on Twitter During Health Crisis in Non-Democratic Context
Gratification or Dissent
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2414736 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Limukani Mathe (0000-0002-6776-0683, North-West University, corresponding author), Gilbert Motsaathebe (0000-0002-8681-6945, North-West University) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2024-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Media + Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2056-3051 • E-ISSN: 2056-3051 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/20563051231224404 |
| OpenAlex | W4390703778 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 45 |
There is scholarly debate on whether digital political participation influence decision-making or merely make citizens feel good. Using digital public sphere theory and play, this article explores political participation on Twitter during the COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe. The study applies a qualitative content analysis on tweets as it answers questions: does perspective by media users in a health crisis exert political change and in what way does play on digital spheres induce participation for gratification purposes? The findings of the study reflect the use of conspiratorial satire, hyperbole, and propaganda in the COVID-19 pandemic as media users laugh at poor health infrastructure, corruption and authoritarianism. We argue that netizens' political participation on social media is somehow overrated for it has not generated meaningful change in non-democratic context but gives the media user, a sense of gratification for scoffing at the ruling regime
Authoritarianism · Democracy · Digital media · Dissent · Gratification · Media studies · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Public sphere · Social media · Sociology · Law · Media Studies and Communication · Misinformation and Its Impacts · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology
The play theory of mass communication.
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The Myth of Digital Democracy
The Relation between Media Consumption and Misinformation at the Outset of the Sars-CoV-2 Pandemic in the US
The Case Against Mass E‐mails
Discursive Communities, Protest, Xenophobia, and Looting in South Africa
Succession Politics and Factional Journalism in Zimbabwe
Women’s political participation in Zimbabwe
Social Media and Digital Dissidence in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
The why of humour during a crisis
The virtual sphere
Being a Citizen Online
Social media dissidence and activist resistance in Zimbabwe
Rethinking Ethical Journalism in the Worsening Socio-Economic and Political Crisis in Zimbabwe
Play and the power of news
Investigating Deliberativeness Comparatively
Manufacturing consent
The Relationship Between Social Media Use and Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories and Misinformation
African multilingual public sphere
Briefing
Hearing Ordinary Voices
Understanding Conspiracy Theories
Unities and Disunities in Zimbabwe's 1990 Election
Laughing through the Stomach
Four models of the public sphere in modern democracies
Laughing through the Virus the Zimbabwean Way
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,5 |
| Citation span | 2024 - 2026 (3) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |