Trending Tensions: Social Media and Influencer Engagement in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Dispute

Sintayehu Gebru; Mulatu Alemayehu Moges; Samuel Tefera Alemu

doi:10.20372/3afd8r31

Authors

Sintayehu Gebru College of Social Science, Arts and Humanities, Department of History and Archaeology, African Studies Program, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia
Mulatu Alemayehu University of Agder, Norway
Samuel Tefera Addis Ababa University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.20372/3afd8r31

Keywords:

GERD; social media; geopolitics; digital diplomacy; Nile Basin; Egypt; Ethiopia.

Abstract

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) is a highly contentious issue in African and
Middle Eastern geopolitics. This issue has led to extensive international and domestic discourse and negotiations. Social media can be regarded as a central stage for state and non-state actors to express themselves regarding the GERD issue and engage in informal forms of digital geopolitics. This study aims to examine the role of social media in shaping the GERD issue, with a specific emphasis on the Egyptian and Ethiopian perspectives, which are the most vocal and impactful contributors to this issue. This study employed a qualitative research approach and collected data through interviews with 18 key informants, including diplomats, geopolitical experts, social media influencers, state officials, international journalists and domestic advocates. The study used thematic analysis to extract meaning from key informants’ interview data. The study found that social media has greatly altered the way the GERD issue is framed, emphasizing nationalism, counter-hegemonic narratives, misinformation and emotional framing. This study contributes to the existing literature on digital geopolitics by examining the role and impact of social media on conflict and conflict management. This study concludes that a deep understanding of the role and impact of social media can help resolve international and domestic conflicts, with a specific emphasis on the Nile River Basin.

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Author Biographies

Sintayehu Gebru, College of Social Science, Arts and Humanities, Department of History and Archaeology, African Studies Program, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia

Sintayehu Gebru is an academician, a novelist, and digital content creator. "Not quite an echo chamber: ethnic debate on Ethiopian Facebook pages during times of unrest" is his first article published in one of the SAGE journals, appearing as a co-author with a Norwegian professor. "Dinglen," a full-length Amharic novel, is his first book. He is affiliated with the Addis Ababa University and lives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he teaches journalism and communications at the College of Social Science, Humanity, and Arts.
Mulatu Alemayehu, University of Agder, Norway

Mulatu Alemayehu Moges, PhD, is an Associate Professor at University of Agder, Norway. He is an established researcher of online and mainstream media in Ethiopia. His PhD at the University of Oslo focused on how the media dealt with internal conflicts in Ethiopia. His expertise is on several issues, including hate speech, conflict reporting, peace journalism, safety of journalists, elections, journalism practice, media and identity, media frame and others. He was also a coordinator of NORPART – the Journalism Capacity Building project between Norway and Ethiopia from 2016 to 2023. He was also a researcher for Decoding Digital Media in the African Conflict (DDMAC). He has also been a senior consultant on a project investigating online-based debates of the Ethiopian general elections in 2015 on behalf of the universities of Oxford and Addis Ababa. The results of this study, which focused on the prevalence of hate speech on digital platforms, have received wider attention from a wide spectrum of scholars, policymakers and media personnel.
Samuel Tefera, Addis Ababa University

Dr. Samuel Tefera is one of a few African studies graduates in Ethiopia. He is an active participant in the issue of the Nile geopolitical debate following the inauguration of the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam. Also, he contributed to the Ethiopian Ministry of Peace as a policy advisor. He is affiliated with the Addis Ababa University and lives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he teaches African and Oriental studies at the College of Social Science, Humanity, and Arts.