The Digital Frontline: A Qualitative Analysis of Social Media Utilisation during Nigeria’s #EndSARS Protest

Abstract

Background: In recent times, social media platforms have transitioned from simple communication tools to the driving force for global protest mobilisation. These platforms serve as vital channels for collaboration and information dissemination, effectively archiving collective memory for future generations. While scholarship has acknowledged the general role of digital media in protests, there remains a notable gap in understanding the specific qualitative nuances of how these platforms are used to promote movements in developing democracies such as Nigeria.

Objective: The primary objective of this study was to determine the specific ways in which social media platforms were utilised during the 2020 #EndSARS protest in Nigeria to foster mobilisation and awareness.

Methodology: This study employed a qualitative content analysis design anchored in the uses and gratification theory (UGT). Data were collected through structured interview sessions with 32 social media users who were active participants in the #EndSARS protest. The interviews, conducted via Google Meet, were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using a grounded theory approach to generate initial categories and dimensions.

Results: The findings identified six key themes explaining the instrumental use of social media during the protest: coordinating activities, sustaining the movement over time, promoting the goal of the protest to the international community, providing real-time updates, justifying the protest through shared experiences of brutality, and leveraging social media attributes like accessibility and multimedia capabilities. The results demonstrate that protesters combined online and offline forms of participation to increase movement effectiveness.

Conclusion: The study concludes that social media serves as a powerful vehicle for solidarity in Nigeria, enabling citizens to challenge dominant power groups and maintain collective action despite threats of state repression. The findings suggest that properly managed social media serves as a digital opposition, holding the government accountable by highlighting social recriminations and economic downturns.