Exploring the use of the mass media by youths in Pentecostal churches in Nigeria

Abstract

This article examines how Pentecostal churches in Nigeria use online media to target the youth. Nigeria is now a major player in the commercialization of religion due to the sheer number of websites that promote add-on spiritual services. The promotion of Internet conversion is a major strategy in attracting the youth who are more active and comfortable on the Internet. Pentecostal consumerism became an avenue for the proliferation of religious programs and the consumption of different spiritual products on the Internet. At the same time, the lure of the global mission has also attracted the youth who have the idea ( Japa syndrome) of emigrating from Nigeria to spread the gospel for economic reasons. This article intends to fill that gap in the literature by exploring how Pentecostal churches use the online media as a form of e-evangelism or e-vangelism for the youth.