Social media is a dangerous beast. Dangerous because it is prone to mood swings. It can be fickle and unpredictable. It can destroy reputations as fast as it creates them.
Rahul Gandhi is all over the social media right now. He is being lionised and glorified just the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi was till a few months ago. He is the new messiah and one-stop solution to all the problems of the country. If he is wise enough, he would foresee the perils of excessive adulation and impractical expectations. Otherwise he would find himself in a similar trap as Modi.
Rahul’s thinktank had a compulsion to turn to social media because most of the mainstream media, including television channels and major newspapers, are inimical to him. And they make no secret of their dislike for him. Now that social media is far more effective, both in terms of reach and impact, their move stands to reason. Rahul doesn’t need the big media to get his point across to a larger audience any longer.
It’s a bit similar to the way Modi’s image managers leveraged the social media to make him larger-than-life prior to the elections of 2014 and till the elections of 2024. The difference is the prime minister’s supporters gradually made him unreal through fantastic claims about him, Rahul’s appear to be more grounded. They connect him to issues and people, desist from making him a superman with superhuman abilities. It helps that he mingles with people of all sections, particularly the disprivileged ones, with certain ease. It has never been the case with the prime minister.
From the privileged dynast with a sense of entitlement to man of the masses – the transition has been interesting in Rahul’s case. It doesn’t appear manufactured or pretentious. This image juxtaposed to that of the prime minister appears much brighter, much more organic. But his social media handlers must be cautious. Supporters in their enthusiasm tend to go over the top and end up damaging the cause of their heroes. They can be quick to disown their object of worship too. Like we said earlier, social media is a fickle beast. Its loyalty can never be taken for granted.
However, it finally comes down to what kind of image of himself the public figure wants to project. It’s a personal choice. If Modi’s social media managers and supporters projected Modi as a demi-god who is capable of solving all problems of the world in a jiffy, it could not have happened without his tacit approval. Rahul may opt to have a different image. Whatever it is, if it’s too far removed from his reality it is bound to crashland at some point. It requires an educated and mature mind to engage with the social media.
And it also requires him to involve people with certain respectability. Right now it appears that many of Rahul Gandhi’s supporters are journalists and political observers with some experience and credibility. There’s an element of professionalism in their observation and analysis of events unlike the ones rooting for the prime minister. But there’s a small band of irrational supporters too like the andh bhakts of the latter. Rahul should be wary of this lot. If he starts believing the lies they propagate then he would be inviting trouble.
He can easily get into a trap if he lets his social media image run ahead of his true image on the ground. It’s a trap escape from which is not easy.
(By arrangement with Perspective Bytes)
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