Obasanjo’s Internet – Aisha Salaudeen

Did you know that there are approximately 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide? Can you imagine all the different ways in which we all use the internet? Obasanjo’s Internet is our interview series where we speak to some of our internet favourites on how they relate to the internet and what it means to them and their work. This week, Journalist and Award-winning storyteller, Aisha Salaudeen, talks to us about how she uses Obasanjo’s Internet. 

What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?

I press my phone. 

How do you use the internet for work or pleasure?

Both. My work is intertwined with social media anyway, so there is a blur between whether or not I am using it for pleasure. I’ve gotten jobs off social media, and I’m a storyteller so I’m constantly consuming stories on social media whether it is Netflix, YouTube, or even Twitter and Instagram.  So there’s a very thin line. Sometimes I’m scrolling to catch the latest TL gossip and I see something interesting that could be made into a story. So it’s a mix of both.

What moment or episode in your life would you say captured the essence of the internet?

I think the first real moment for me that I remember was in 2017. I was rounding off my NYSC and I needed a job. I wanted to switch to journalism from finance and accounting. One of the things that really helped me was social media. I put out a tweet talking about everything that I had done in the storytelling space even though I was not a journalist. It was basically a “help I need a job” and the tweet went far and contributed to me getting my first full-time role as well as a bunch of freelance opportunities.

So that was really the first moment that solidified the power of social media for me. But there have been other very strong examples. I mean, the #EndSars movement is a recent example, the #Metoo movement, #Arewametoo, there are so many examples of just how important the internet is, especially when it comes to things like social change, feminism, all of that. So, I guess there are countless examples. 

Your favorite social media platform and why?

I don’t know if I can choose. I would say first of all WhatsApp because that’s where I talk to a lot of people; my friends, family, colleagues, people I reach out to for work stuff, but there is also Twitter. As I said, Twitter got me my first full-time gig in journalism. Twitter is where I get a lot of interesting stories, gossip and new things happening.

I’m going to sneak in Netflix because that’s where I watch all my Kdramas. So let’s say those. 

What was the last meme you saved?

Do you remember the first time something you posted went viral? What was it? How did it make you feel?

It was the thing where I said I wanted a job that was 2017. How did it make me feel? Omo, I don’t know. I can’t remember but it was good viral and I needed a job so I didn’t really think too much about how it made me feel. It just made me feel like I was going to get a job. 

What’s the most outrage you have ever generated over something you posted? How did you react to it?

Listen, every time I tweet what I think is normal about feminism or women’s rights, everybody is like, “oh, what is she talking about”. If I was to think of the most outrage, well, there was a time in 2018 – again, I don’t know if this one generated the most outrage – It’s just the one I remember immediately. I did this article when I was at Stears, about how single women in Nigeria can’t rent houses because there’s discrimination there. The article went far and people were in my mentions talking all sorts of nonsense about how women are always trying to play the victim and there were just a lot of DMs and messages saying, “What’s this one talking about?”.

That’s the one I remember right now in this moment. And how did I deal with it? I didn’t deal with it. I really, really enjoy it when I make a story or a point about ideologies that I feel very strongly about and people are getting their knickers in a twist. It made me very happy. So I was very excited to see the men like crying in my mention and just like, oh, keep crying. So in terms of how I dealt with it, I didn’t. I was just very happy to see that they were crying over the fact. 

What rules do you live by on the internet?

I’m mostly an observer. I don’t know if that’s a rule. I observe a lot and I think that’s my mantra on the internet mostly because I don’t think the internet is a great place for conversations that have nuance, except in scenarios where I write articles like the rent one where there’s a lot of nuance, there’s evidence, it’s fact-based. Yes, then I’m out there talking about it. But generally, I just observe because it really isn’t a great place to have full-fledged conversations.

What is your guiltiest online pleasure?

Scrolling through Instagram and Twitter when I’m supposed to be working. I like it but I don’t like it.

Would you say you have an online persona?

No, what you see online is what you get. I’m not really the most interesting person and when you meet me in real life, you also realise that. So the same thing you would see on my Instagram and Twitter or whatever is in my articles is the same thing you see in real life, to be honest.

What’s your favourite emoji and why?

My favorite emoji right now? Because it changes like every three months. Right now, It’s the skull emoji.  I like it because it’s provocative. I don’t even know what it means. it just gets people talking. You use it and they’re like, “what’s this?” and I don’t know. But hey, it’s interesting.

Are you particular about your feed?

On Twitter, I don’t give a shit. On Instagram, I’ve had very interesting instances of people saying they don’t have an idea of what I do based on my Instagram. I don’t post much and it’s haphazard. So I’m trying to be very deliberate about my feed now on Instagram. Just so when people see it, they can tell this is a storyteller. On Twitter, that’s chaotic, so no. I guess the answer to that question is yes and no.

YouTube or TikTok? Which do you prefer and why?

Oh Gosh, YouTube o, I don’t know how to use TikTok. I recently opened a TikTok account and I realized first of all, I didn’t even know you could send DMS on TikTok. So that’s what it’s like, and I have backdated DMs from three months ago. I was like, “yeah, this isn’t for me”. So definitely YouTube.

It’s also where I consume a lot of information. I love Kdramas. So every time I finish a Kdrama, I go on YouTube and I watch the interviews with the cast, I watch all those YouTube channels that break it down.

I also watch a lot of documentaries on YouTube because I’m a documentary filmmaker. So I think I’ll just stick to YouTube.

Which Nigerian creator do you think the world needs to see and hear more of?

There’s so many. Let me start with my husband, I’d say Fu’ad. Fu’ad makes a lot of cool stuff. He’s done all kinds of stories in different formats, and he’s doing pretty interesting things, especially now with this thing called Archiving – God I feel like a salesperson. But essentially, he’s helping to digitize old newspapers so that we have more access to information. I think that’s a big deal. I think when we start being able to read things that have been written previously, even before we were born, it’s just a bridge for information and lots of cool things can happen.

I’d also say Korede Azeez. She is a filmmaker and director who makes really interesting – and I would say unconventional stories. For example, she just finished filming a feature film that is centred on Muslim women. We don’t see that a lot in Nigerian media today. She also won the short film competition, Africa Folktales, Reimagined Competition and her story was set in Northern Nigeria. Again, she just does cool stuff that I want to say is not really conventional. So those are the two people who immediately come to mind. There are a lot of them but right now it’s just escaping me.

Who is the coolest person you follow and the coolest person who follows you?

Nobody comes to mind immediately. It’s not something I actively think about.

What is your favourite Nigerian podcast?

I really like Tea With Tay. I don’t know if it’s my favorite, but I like it a lot. I like it because he has a way of asking questions that gets people talking. He gets straight to it, but it’s very interesting, fun, and conversational. By the time you’re done, you realize that you’ve told Taymesan a lot of things that you probably didn’t even plan. So I’d say Tea With Tay for now, at least. 

5 people you’d love to see answer these questions 

Ibukun Akinola. She doesn’t do stuff like this a lot, so I’m curious about what’s going on in her head. 

Elon Musk. He has a lot of interesting things that go on in his head.

Taiwo Adeyemi. He is a talent manager. He manages some of Nollywood actors and I want to know how he uses social media. 

Ted Oladele. He is the VP of design at Flutterwave and every time I hang out with Ted, he’s always on his phone so I want to know what he’s always doing there.

Read previous Obasanjo’s Internet entries here.