Renad Ghanem Saudi Gazette Social Networking web sites have become an incredible tool to voice opinions over matters that seem unacceptable or unjustified to the common man. Saudi society has drastically changed in the past few years, and the new generation has held on to social media web sites for creating dialogs. Media experts who spoke to Saudi Gazette said that the social media has helped Saudis speak freely about issues that distress them. Even government officials and diplomats have taken to the social networking web sites to directly interact with their people. In short, it has bridged the gap between not only people but also officials. According to socialbakers.com, Saudi Arabia has the highest social media penetration in the MENA region with around four million Facebook users. Twitter users in the Kingdom have increased by 3,000 percent, according to some recent studies. Saudis are now leveraging on social media to launch campaigns, initiate awareness about a cause, advertise or promote their companies or products, among others. Waleed Samoum, a Saudi social media specialist and blogger, believes that social media users in the Kingdom are mature. “Social media has shown how much Saudis love their country and their leader. On the national day, citizens began changing their profile images and kept nicknames that reflect their love for the country.” Samoum said social media has helped officials interact with people directly. For example, the Minister of Commerce and Industry Tawfiq Al-Rabiah said that he understands the importance of social media and that is why he has an an account on the web sites, so that he can personally interact with people and monitor irregularities. Other high ranking officials on social media include Prince Nawaf Bin Fahad, Minister of Information, among others. Some issues highlighted on Twitter were the problems faced by female teachers at schools, a campaign to let women drive in the Kingdom, among others. Samoum said that the social media is leading in terms of getting the latest news and traditional media channels like newspapers and magazines pick their leads from Facebook and Twitter for news. Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi writer and director of Alarab News channel, said that social media rapidly disseminate the idea of volunteering and charity work. He believes that the social media is bold as it takes an initiative to raise an issue and spark a debate, unlike traditional media channels. For example, Khashoggi said, an issue that first surfaced on the social media web site was if Saudi Arabia doesn't save petroleum, will it turn into an importer from an exporter of the precious, non-renewable resource by 2030. “Many issues concerning the citizenship of children born from Saudi mothers has created a spur in the social media,” Khashoggi said, adding that now there is more transparency between the government and the people. Khashoggi further said that users should be aware of what is going around them and should not blindly follow people. Saudi Kateb, a new media professor and Saudi writer, believes that the merits of social media exceed its demerits. Kateb said that social media is “a school of dialogue literature.” In social media we can expect anything, and hence we should check the credibility of the tweets or the news before sharing them. Social media also provides details about current activities taking place in the country or city. “For example, I came to know about Souq Okaz through social media.There was a lot of information on the page and every time I logged I found something new and interesting,” Kateb said.
