The Web as an Alternative Communication Resource for Pro-Biafra Independent Movements in Nigeria: The Case of Indigenous People of Biafra

Abstract

The web has become an important platform for social Movement communication. This paper seeks to: (1) examine the extent to which the IPOB Movement, one of the prominent social Movements in Nigeria, appropriates its websites to communicate oppositional interpretations and discourses that capture the essential essence of its struggles for Biafran Independence; (2) assess the communication practices on the websites and the extent to which they enhance the capacity of the Movement to advance its cause, counter anti-Biafra propaganda and challenge State oppression; (3) empirically analyse patterns of communication practices of the web and provide a theoretical connection to how the Movement’s websites contribute to building a radical democratic public sphere in Nigeria. The results show that a mix of alarm and outrage with trolling mechanism were significant repertoire of resistant communication by which the Movement walked itself to the frontline of public discourse in Nigeria’s public sphere. It is found that the websites (1) provided information relevant for micro mobilisation; (2) serve as a hub for native reporting and radical content production and (3) serve as a channel for documenting graphic evidence of victimhood and contestation of issues relating to the Nigeria democracy and Biafra independent struggle. However, the study notes a varying degree of focus in the main agenda of the Movement, which is mobilising support for referendum to determine Biafran union with Nigeria. The paper concludes that although the websites serve as a hub for circulating oppositional interpretations of events which are of interest to the Movement, there is limited evidence to suggest communication of articulate objective of the Movement for observers’ evaluation. The implication of this for African social movements is discussed.

Keywords

• alternative media theory
• biafra movement
• internet communication
• ipob websites
• radical democracy
• social movement