Iraqi public opinion sources on the Basra Governorate crisis during 2018

Abstract

This study seeks to identify the most important media sources that the public relies on to learn about the news, events, and developments of the Basra Governorate crisis during 2018, and the developments that it witnessed in a way that contributed to the emergence of popular protests demanding the improvement of the service and living conditions of the governorate, as it is a governorate with a major economic dimension that contributes to strengthening Iraq’s financial capacity. The researcher followed the survey method as it is one of the basic methods that seek to collect information from the public to reach accurate scientific results, as the researcher used the questionnaire tool by distributing it to a representative sample of the Iraqi public amounting to (210) in three Iraqi governorates (Wasit, Kirkuk, Basra). The research reached several results represented by:

1. All members of the research sample indicated that they constantly follow up on public opinion issues, with (64) repetitions and a percentage of (31.52)%.

2. All members of the research sample indicated that they follow up on the Basra Governorate crisis, with (203) repetitions and a percentage of 100%.

3. (118) items, at a percentage of (58.1%), indicated that materials published through new media, including news, information, and images, contribute to shaping public opinion regarding the Basra Governorate crisis to a greater extent than those published by traditional media. This is an indication of the superiority of new media over traditional media. 7. New media provides a greater opportunity to interact with the events of the Basra Governorate crisis compared to traditional media, with (129) repetitions and a percentage of (63.5%).