Social Media and Politics

Social media has entirely shifted the approach politicians employ when running a campaign for public office. In the past, the “war room” technique was the go-to method by which candidates and their team built a relationship with voters and won positive public opinion. In the “war room,” the candidate and their campaign staff would make decisions about how they wished for the public to perceive them, and then work as a team to successfully control and express this perception, with focus groups providing feedback to serve as a guide. In the essay “Crossing the Campaign Divide: Dean Changes the Election Game” by David Iozzi and Lance Bennett, the 2004 presidential campaign primaries for Howard Dean is examined to highlight how the shift away from this traditional model began. According to the authors, emerging social networking technologies (SNTs) gave voters greater access to campaign information, and the ability to organize privately with politically like-minded individuals. The essay states, “As the number of viewers and comments increased, the blog transformed from an online journal into a grassroots networking and organizing hub that facilitated two-way communication among supporters and between the supporters and the campaign.” This technique for campaigning in which there is interactivity between supporters and the campaign staff is known as the “networked campaign” model. However, this also presents a greater potential for negatively impacting the overall campaign, as these platforms give supporters a chance to influence or misrepresent the campaign’s message.

In his article “Cell Phones, Social Media, and Campaign 2014”, Aaron Smith analyzes survey data on the ways that cell phones contribute to how campaign news is received. According to the study, following political news via social media increases support for candidates, because it allows the voters to feel more connected to the candidates. Connection to candidates through social media is also beneficial because it has changed the way that the public views political news. In the past, many people didn’t think of political news as relevant to their own lives, but this attitude has shifted dramatically with the introduction of social media that is conducive to sharing political news. One of the downsides to the use of social media, however, has been the hive mind effect that has become pervasive during and even after campaigning. The sides of the political spectrum have polarized, and fights concerning candidates and political issues have become common parts of the social media experience on nearly every platform.

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