If Nigerians spend just 2% of the time they spend on arguing and fighting online to reading before they reply, they will solve half of the country's problems.
A large part of our problem is that people talk, argue and fight before they understand what they read.
When speed supersedes comprehension, social media platforms transform from spaces of exchange into arenas of emotional combat.
Some don't read beyond the headline and 140 characters but will produce responses that grow a life of its own.
Consuming only titles or brief, quotable snippets creates an illusion of complete knowledge. Where such people are already seen to be influencers, educated or popular, they become the portal of misinformation that is too solid to be dissolved.
This cognitive shortcut created by consumption of highlights, headlines, and soundbites tricks the brain into feeling fully equipped to debate a topic it has barely grazed.
The result is people who seek out a fight or turn a worthless conversation into a gidigbo fight with no winner. People seeking validation of half baked truths or outright illusions, and people seeking new recruits to join their echo chamber.
This is a pandemic!
Talk about Educated Illiterates or Educated Fools, as the case may be.
No wonder William H. Whyte said that "the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place."
-WoK
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