Can elections be won on Instagram?

Researcher Jenny Madestam of Södertörn University was a speaker today at DIGSUM’s symposium on "Digitalisation, democracy and participation".

Jenny is interested in politicial leadership, and especially in the role of social media in the political process. Her lecture focused on how social media potentially puts parties and politicians in direct and interactive contact with citizens. Research however shows that many politicians use social media for one-way communication, as a megaphone, rather than for interaction.

Madestam's own research has shown that the ways in which politicians use social media, for example to what degree they share parts of their personal life, play an important role for how they are perceived.