Getting over the Third World mentality
RIS ID
79639
Link to publisher version (URL)
Abstract
The ruling coalition in Malaysia has suffered its worst election result in decades by winning only a simple majority,” BBC World News reported on March 8, 2008. That would not have happened had it not been for the influence of social media — at least that was the theory.
In reality, social media is significant only if it translates the cacophony of chatter and tweets into votes that count in a regime where voting is not compulsory.
About two million are reportedly eligible to vote for the first time in next year’s election — the majority of which are predominantly urban-based netizens, who could be game changers that the incumbents and opposition are focused on winning over.
COinS
Publication Details
Loo, E. "Getting over the Third World mentality." The Edge Weekly December 24, 2012 (2013): 70.