Former United States President Donald Trump has not been too visible of late. His diminishment started with the suspensions and bans imposed on him by Twitter, Facebook and YouTube following the Capitol riots of January 6 that were provoked by him and his allies. It was illuminating how quickly Trump disappeared from our lives, even before Joe Biden took over as the country’s president, once social media became inaccessible to him.
Does that mean that social media tends to magnify populists like Trump? Or does it mean that social media merely reflects the reality out there and hence enables us to keep track of the rise of politicians like Trump?
One way to answer this question is to look at what social media does. Is it a kind of political platform or is it sheer gossiping in the corridors?
A communicative device
There is no doubt that social media can be used to organise political protests. But that highlights its role as a channel of communication. It does not make…