The Power of Social Media in Politics

 By Caleb Tobin

Political candidates are spending more and more money on social media advertising, a study from the American Bar Association showed.

“In the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election, the public became aware of just how powerful and game changing political advertising on social media could be,” the study said.

According to the study, in 2008, $22.25 million was spent on online political ads. That number rose to $1.4 billion in 2016. 

Campaigns are using social media as a way to engage directly with supporters, targeting key demographics in order to gain more support among those groups. The sites most commonly used are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. 

“I saw the Trump campaign, for example, run a lot of ads on YouTube as the election heated up. It seemed like as election day got closer, the more ads I saw,” said Joseph McLaughlin, a Holbrook resident. 

One campaign that heavily used social media was Michelle Wu and her recent campaign for mayor of Boston. 

The campaign had a prominent presence on Twitter and Instagram, posting campaign events and encouraging people to vote on election day. They also used social media to post photos of volunteers canvassing neighborhoods and inform people about how they could get involved. 

Wu’s campaign also regularly retweeted her supporter’s posts on Twitter, helping people feel more personally engaged with Wu’s run for mayor.

In Knoxville, Tennessee, candidates in a local city council election made use of Twitter to post themselves at various events. 

“Images of them at events circulated well, and many took to Twitter to speak their minds about issues they were facing,” said Chris Salvemini, a Knoxville resident. 

“Their posts got extremely consistent engagement rates, and they were high compared to other local pages for businesses and individuals,” said Salvemini

The way campaigns have used social media has shifted as well.

“It's changed over time. In 2012, we were trying to understand how Twitter could impact the press. We learned very quickly that press and political operatives use it obsessively. It essentially replaced the AP newswire. Stories or messages can bubble up on Twitter and end up on the nightly news,” said Matt Gorman, former Communications Director for the National Republican Congressional Committee. 

Gorman also worked as Deputy Rapid Response Director for Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, and Rapid Response Director for Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Political campaigns have become careful because of social media and need to be careful with messaging, according to Gorman.

“It's made them far more sensitive to what's been said out there on the internet. False narratives, minor flaps, or pithy quotes can take on a life of their own and set news coverage for days,” said Gorman. “The key to remember is that it's a bubble. You're not talking to a representative sample of voters. You're talking to a group of people who, for the most part, know who they're voting for and are extremely engaged with politics.” 

There is a reason campaigns have been drawn to social media. 

Political activism among Americans has risen over the past decade, according to a study by the Pew Research Center.

The study says about half of Americans have been politically active on social media. Roughly 20% have used it to search for information on local political rallies and protests. 

Also, 32% encouraged others to take action on political issues, increasing the number of politically active people on social media. 

Another Pew Research Center study showed Gen Z and Millennials are most likely to use social media for civic activities.

The study showed in the age range of 18-29:

• ·      44% are likely to promote political material online
• ·      42% will post their thoughts on issues
• ·      36% repost political content
• ·      25% follow political candidates and officials online. 

The 30-49 age range is on average 5% below the 19-29 range on those topics. 

Matt Gorman said younger generations could become more involved in campaigns due to social media, but it has also changed the way we interact with others.

“It's possible. I also think it has the ability to divide and change how we talk to each other. Even outside social media, we say things to strangers we'd never dream of saying face-to-face,” said Gorman. 

Social media has also affected the way some journalists cover campaigns and officials. 

“It has also laid bare many journalists' internal biases. We see how they process news and get insight into what they think,” said Gorman. 

When asked about social media’s positive effects, Gorman said “On the positive side, it democratized news in a way that had never been done before. It's no longer the 3 big broadcast networks or the 3 big cable news networks. It's you and me.”