SOCIAL MEDIA AND DIGITAL JUSTICE IN NIGERIA: AN APPRAISAL

In recent times, it has become a common knowledge that there are people who are cut off from the flow of information and further isolated from the pull of discussions made possible by digital media. This study, therefore, sought to examine the perception of Southeast residents towards the issues of digital justice in the media space of the country. This study is anchored on the technological determinism theory which was propounded by Marshall McLuhan in 1964. This study adopted the mixed-method research design which deals with the collection of quantitative and qualitative data. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (2017), the population of the southeast is 21,955,400. The sample size of 384 was arrived at using Wimmer and Dominick Online Sample Size Calculator. For the qualitative aspect of the study (in-depth interview), 10 respondents were purposively sampled. Furthermore, the questionnaire and interview guide were the instruments of data collection. The findings of the study revealed that there was a high rate of social media usage among residents in Southeast, Nigeria. Further analysis of data revealed that, at a mean average of 3.0, respondents agree that there are cases of digital injustice in southeast Nigeria. Findings of the study also indicated that, at a mean average of 3.1, respondents identified inadequate telecommunication services, poor network, and lack of knowledge as challenges affecting the actualization of digital justice in the southeast, Nigeria. The researcher concludes that the actualization of digital justice may not be actualized until the residents are given access to digital infrastructure, quality data networks, cheaper social media-enabled gadgets, and cheaper data services. It is recommended that more effort should be put in place by both government and private telecommunication companies to ensure that everybody is connected to digital media.