The spread of Radicalism on Social Media Due to Lack of Literacy
TEGAL – Chairperson of Muhammadiyah Youth Council of Tegal City, Abdul Wahab, said the issue of radicalism became an interesting discourse in some circles, especially when the pattern of dissemination was shifting from conventional to social media.
According to him the phenomenon of radicalism among Muslims is often propped up with religious understanding which actually cannot be justified either.
Such understanding is actually not caused by a single factor
which stands alone. Social, economic, environmental, political factors even
education also contributes to influencing religious radicalism.
However, Wahab said religious radicalism is often driven by understanding
narrow religion, feeling depressed, hegemony, insecure
psychosocial, as well as local and global injustice.
“This movement is obtained
many followers among the young generation of Islam on social media, “Wahab said in a dialogue with the theme Watch Out for Spread of Radicalism Through Social Media ‘in the City of Tegal, Tuesday (03/24/2020).
Still according to Wahab, because in Muhammadiyah Youth each individual cadre should supervise themselves in the ethics of social media. So that what is conveyed on social media is more useful not vice versa.
“Obviously we strongly recommend that all young people always do actions that benefit fellow human beings and their environment in a constructive manner by not spreading content or other divisions,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chairperson of the Anshor City of Tegal City, Sarwo Edi added various factors that enable young generation to be vulnerable to radicalism through online networks on social media because the first is the ease of accessing information that is not accompanied by the ability to filter information
the.
“Through the internet and social media, hoax content (hoax news) is more
massive and phenomenal at the moment. It’s as if competing with hate speech content
(utterance of hatred) in meeting the internet and social media networks, “Sarwo said.
Then he continued high intensity but weak literacy among young people would cause them to be easily netted and provoked by content
they access.
Another factor is that radical groups infiltrate through
a variety of propaganda can lure internet and social media users.
“They are able to utilize social media to mobilize, recruit,
influence, and invite, especially teenagers, “he said.
Therefore, Sarwo advised the younger generation to reproduce the correct literacy so that they would not be exposed to radicalism.