CREATING A PEACEFUL WORLD ORDER: IMPERATIVES FOR SOCIAL COMMUNICATION

Abstract

This paper argues that social communication has a role to play in fostering a peaceful world order. Ever since the emergence of the tools of social communication or the modern media, dynamics of the world have been altered, especially in their approach to the source, management, packaging or dissemination of news items in a micro or macro milieu. Today, news is everybody’s business and it manifests in churning out of materials through such social networks as the Facebook, the Instagram, the Twitter, the LinkedIn, the WhatsApp, etc. In all of these, the traditional realm of news sourcing, news reporting and news sharing has changed. No doubt, social communication in Nigeria and elsewhere has its merits and demerits. Fake-news has been blamed for most of the problems affecting a peaceful world order besides the Contra-World Oder school of thought. Creating a peaceful world order is the prerogative of all the members of the society. The League of Nations, the United Nations, the Post-Cold World Order, and, the Henry Kissinger World Order are the sponsors of the Pro-World Order whereas the Ultra Christian Revivalism, Radical Islamic Fundamentalism, and Evil/Crisis-Ridden World Order argue for the Contra-World Order. In its discussion, the paper presents and analyses their respective positions. The present research derives its premise from a Christian ethical perspective while the subject matter proceeds from the principles of Christian tradition and pedagogy. It is also interfaced with the communication ethics. Again, the research depends on strict logical syllogism rather than arithmetical formulae in its discourse. In the end, the work infers that social communication has the task of creating a peaceful world order. The study recommends a number of steps towards the creation of a peaceful world order through the social communication.