Twitter and Elections around the World: Campaigning in 140 Characters or Less

by Richard Davis (Editor), Christina Holtz Bacha (Editor), Marion R. Just (Editor)

Overview

Twitter already has become an important electoral communication tool between candidates, parties and their specific constituencies. No serious candidate campaign ignores Twitter, while political party organizations utilize Twitter to communicate with partisans, reinforce supporters, and mobilize voters.

Whereas much scholarship to date has focused primarily on Twitter’s political usage in the United States, there still remain many questions about the political uses and effects of Twitter in a global context. Does Twitter effect how reporters interact with candidates or even with each other? Does Twitter increase voter participation? Who is tweeting about elections? Why do people use Twitter in electoral contexts? Which type of candidate is more likely to use Twitter and why? Do parties differ in their use of Twitter, and why? Does Twitter increase candidate-voter interaction? Is Twitter shaping elections in various system contexts, and if so how? What is the influence of system context on Twitter use by parties, candidates, reporters, and voters?

Eloquently combining theory and practice, established and rising scholars in the field of political communication have been brought together to provide an essential overview of the influence of Twitter on elections in a comparative perspective. Readers of this book will not only learn everything there is to know about this specific influence of Twitter, but more broadly how to approach the study of various online tools in general.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781317363132
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/01/2016
Series:	Routledge Studies in Global Information, Politics and Society
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	248
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Richard Davis is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Office of Civic Engagement at Brigham Young University. He is the author of several books on the Internet and American politics including New Media and American Politics (1998), with Diana Owen; The Web of Politics (1999); Campaigning Online (2003), with Bruce Bimber; Making a Difference: A Comparative View of the Role of the Internet in Election Politics (2008), with Diana Owen, Stephen Ward, and David Taras; and Typing Politics (2009).

Christina Holtz-Bacha is Professor of Communications at the Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. Past Chair of the International Communication's Associations (ICA) Political Communication Division, Professor Holtz-Bacha has held positions at the University of Mainz, University of Munich, the University of Bochum, the University of Minnesota—Minneapolis, and was a Fellow at the Shorenstein Center/John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1999. Her research and instruction focus on political communication and strategic communication as well as German and European media policy.

Marion Just is the William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Political Science at Wellesley College and a research associate of the Joan Shorenstein Center on Press, Politics and Public Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She is a consultant to the Project for Excellence in Journalism, a member of the advisory board of the Reform Institute, and the editorial board of the Harvard International Journal of Press Politics. Professor Just is a past president of the Northeastern Political Science Association and the New England Political Science Association and former Chair of the Political Communication Section of the American Political Science Association. In 2002, she received an 'Excellence in Mentoring Award' from the Women's Caucus of the American Political Science Association. In 2003, her co-authored book, Crosstalk was named the Outstanding Book in Political Communication. In 2007, she received the APSA's Murray Edelman Award for a Distinguished Career in Political Communication. Professor Just's current research projects concern political campaigns, psychological aspects of voting, patterns of news, politics on the internet, and media coverage of women leaders.

Table of Contents

List of Figures, List of Tables, Series Editor’s Foreword, About the Contributors, Introduction, PART I: Election Journalism, 1. Did Twitter Kill the Boys on the Bus? A Report from the Romney Campaign in 2012, 2. Tweeting to the Press? Effects of Political Twitter Activity on Offline Media in the 2013 German Election Campaign, 3. US Political Journalists’ Use of Twitter: Lessons from 2012 and a Look Ahead, 4. Media Coverage of an Election Campaign on Twitter: The Case of Belgium in the EU Elections, PART II: The Audience, 5. Communication with Constituents in 140 Characters: How Members of Congress Used Twitter to Get Out the Vote in 2014, 6. South Korean Citizens’ Political Information-Sharing on Twitter During the 2012 General Election, PART III: Parties, Candidates, and Campaigns, 7. Message Repetition in Social Media: Presidential Candidate Twitter Feeds in the 2012 US General Election, 8. Campaigning on Twitter: The Use of Social Media in the 2014 European Elections in Italy, 9. Candidate Use of Twitter and the Intersection of Gender, Party, and Position in the Race: A Comparison of Competitive Male/Female Senate Races in 2012 and 2014, 10. Who Gets to Say #AreYouBetterOff ? Promoted Trends and Bashtagging in the 2012 US Presidential Election, 11. Parties, Leaders, and Online Personalization: Twitter in Canadian Electoral Politics, 12. Social Media Coming of Age: Developing Patterns of Congressional Twitter Use, 2007–14, 13. From a Tweet to a Seat: Twitter, Media Visibility, and Electoral Support, Conclusion, Index

Editorial Reviews

'This is a wide-ranging and stimulating collection of essays about how Twitter changes the context for news and journalism, campaigns for office, and citizens’own experiences of public life. The contributors employ a variety of methods to paint intriguing portraits of social media in politics around the world.' - Bruce Bimber, University of California, Santa Barbara -

'Twitter and Elections Around the World has put together a group of top-notch scholars to produce a timely, meaningful, and consequential collection of essays. This is the only book out there that explores the cross-national political implications of Twitter with such breadth and depth. It will guide researchers for years to come. – Jason Gainous, coauthor of Tweeting to Power

From the Publisher