Social media is transforming public life as new data reveals internet access has soared to over 83% of roughly 2.84 million people.
This means more than 2.37 million Jamaicans have internet access.
Political scientist Dr. Michelle Munroe says this transformation began with a shift from print media to television and has since accelerated in the digital age.
Speaking at a recent forum on democracy in the digital age, challenges and opportunities for Jamaica's media landscape, Dr. Munroe said the change has fundamentally reshaped how Jamaicans connect and gauge and participate in public life.
She said this wide reach enhances the influence of digital platforms in both political communications and civic participation.
According to Dr. Munroe, Jamaica had approximately 1.56 million active social media users, aged 18 years and older.
This figure represents 54.8% of the total population and a significant 70.9% of those eligible to vote, since roughly 2.2 million Jamaicans or 77.3% are 18 or older.
In effect, she said seven out of every 10 eligible voters are now reachable via social media platforms.
Instagram is the most widely used social media platform in Jamaica, followed by Facebook, then YouTube, TikTok and X.
The political scientist added that WhatsApp remains a primary tool for political mobilisation.
She also warned against conflating platform activity with civic action. High traffic on Instagram or viral videos on TikTok, she noted, should not be mistaken for deeper democratic engagement.
With these same platforms being used for civic action and participation in trends, Dr. Munroe said this fluidity makes it harder to sustain a coherent public sphere.
Dr. Munroe is head of the Political Science Unit in the Department of Government at the University of the West Indies, Mona campus.
All feeds
