Samar Al-Muqrin
THE social media has been impacting various aspects of life, including politics, economy, sports and social life ever since its appearance. Social networking sites have established their strong presence in societies and countries. As a result many countries, societies and individuals fear them.
The impact of social media is undoubtedly created by its millions of users. In Saudi Arabia, Twitter has the largest number of users who exchange messages on various issues and react to incidents that take place around them. They use this blue bird to carry their messages, voices, demands and criticisms, enabling authorities to take quick action on them.
In the past I have written some of the negative aspects of Twitter. I believe that it has become a strong platform that can take our messages quickly to a large audience. It has helped us mobilize support for social issues and solve many problems.
In Saudi Arabia, every week we discuss one or two major issues on Twitter, which has been instrumental in shaping public opinion. Last week it highlighted the excesses committed by a Jeddah businessman and within hours the Makkah governorate responded by removing the encroachment on public property.
Another tweet was on a security guard at a bank in the Eastern Province who was shown on a video clip pushing an elderly man to the ground following an argument. The video clip went viral on social media and the security guard was terminated from service because of his cruel act.
Twitter messages have brought about positive results in many cases. A girl school guard was honored when parents commented on his excellent services through social media. Saudi nurse Areej Al-Qahtani’s timely help to a bleeding man at a supermarket drew the attention of Minister of National Guard Prince Miteb Bin Abdullah, who appointed her in a hospital run by the National Guard Health Affairs.
Another major incident highlighted on Twitter was the negative response of a health minister toward a Saudi man, who requested specialized treatment for his ailing father. After a few days the minister was removed from his post. These incidents emphasize the significance of social media and its growing impact.
Twitter has become one of the agents of decision-making in the country as the issues taken up by Twitter have often received positive response from the authorities. It has become a decisive monitoring vehicle and those who fall in its trap will not escape action. Let us thank Twitter for its increasing role in social change and finding quick solutions to our various problems.
