Social media has come to dominate our daily lives to a point wherein the near future, there will be a generation whose entire lives will have been documented and published on domains such as Facebook and Instagram.
Undoubtedly, the use of social media has great benefits but there is also a downside to this digital space that we don’t often consider.
Social media users often use it to spread their vitriolic sentiments and most dangerously, false information that could possibly hurt those who are implicated. This begs the question, should social media be used, be regulated and if so, how do we regulate it while still protecting our freedom of speech?
The latest alleged perpetrator of racism on social media is former Durban councillor and businessman, Kessie Nair, who went on a social media rant in which he called President Cyril Ramaphosa the k-word. Nair was arrested and appeared in court where he was charged with crimen injuria and inciting public violence.
Another story that made headlines involved a video circulating on Facebook showing two alleged foreign nationals abducting a young woman who was said to be South African. This video came following the looting of shops owned by foreign nationals in Soweto which left three dead in White City.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) came out to urge South Africans to use social media responsibly as none of the videos that have gone viral in the recent past have been confirmed.
“By now, besides reporting this to the police, one would have expected at least a family would have come forward to publicly confirm at least one of those videos to be legitimate.
“Secondly, the police will never know that these incidents really happened if they are not officially reported. Therefore the only reasonable conclusion we can draw from this is that these videos are hoaxes,” said the SAPS’ Brigadier Vishnu Naidoo speaking to Northglen News.
The South African government would benefit from considering the regulation of social media as it would decrease incidences of disinformation which threatens credible journalism. Soweto Urban Newspapers Head Editor, Mark Scheepers, however, thinks it’s impossible to regulate social media.
“I don’t believe it is possible to regulate social media because of the freedom that is inherent in the establishment of social media apps,” he said.
Scheepers goes on to suggest the introduction of laws governing how social media should be used.
“There should be laws governing publication of any materials that is inclusive of social media because ultimately it is publication whether it is virtual or tangible should not be the issue. You shouldn’t be given the right to express to yourself, even on social media, at the expense of others’ rights,” he continued.
While Section 16 of South Africa’s Constitution regulates freedom of speech, its parameters within the digital space are still being drawn.
Legal advisor and journalist, Helene Eloff, suggests that users familiarise themselves with the country’s statutory and common laws before posting on social media.
These laws include the Sexual Offences Act, the Consumers’ Protection Act and common law crimes such as defamation. Eloff says these laws apply both on tangible media and in the digital space.
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“The constitution gives everyone the right to privacy and dignity. If you want to call someone a dumb pig, you will hurt their dignity. If you post naked pictures of someone else online, you will violate their right to privacy,” she said.
It is important for social media users to know that whatever they post on social media platforms is in the public space and it may be used against you. Eloff also advises users to check their privacy settings and regulate who and what people may tag them in on social media as one can also be prosecuted for sharing media that breaks the country’s law.
While it may be difficult to regulate social media, the prosecution of crimes in the digital space needs to be more stringent so as to ensure that disinformation and ‘fake news’ does not become the order of the day in social media spaces.
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