Public self-censorship in WhatsApp intra-group communication in Zimbabwe

Abstract

The social networking sites have been lauded for their ability to offer mediascapes that enable the full exercise of individual rights and freedoms; such as the right to privacy on social networking sites, freedom of expression and association, among others. This is significant given that the majority of the world’s population now has a significant presence on social media. Communication trends indicate a shift from interaction in the real/physical world to more interactions andtransactions occurring online or in virtual space. This necessitates an exploration of the extent to which privacy and freedom of expression are guaranteed in online interactions. The study reveals the perpetuation of a spiral of silence whereby participants in intra-group communication engage in public self-censorship. Using online participant observation, in which the researcher used data collected from four WhatsApp groups, and the Censorship regimes model, the study interrogates how public self-censoring is implicated even in spaces where no such censoring is otherwise not required.