Social media and politics?
Politics and social media don’t seem like two things that go together. BUT, they do. Obama’s 2008 campaign was heavily involved in the use of social media to attract more votes from a younger audience. The success of the campaign speaks for itself. (Just as a side note, when I googled the phrase 'social media and politics,' a lot of the images that came up were from or related to Obama's campaign.) But Australian politicians do not seem to use social media to their advantage.
Of course there are Facebook and Twitter accounts which represent various politicians but there is no sense of personal interaction. (Jericho 2009, p. 296) The content posted on these pages is generally updates of what the party has been doing that week. The comments sections can be more interactive although responses are usually from a party representative which, in my opinion, is disappointing.
I am not heavily involved in politics for reasons that I do not wish to share over the internet but I will say that my respect for politicians and interest in the subject would rise if, for example, Tony Abbott were to take the time to reply to me personally. Now, it's unrealistic to expect a reply for every Facebook comment or tweet that comes their way. But I think that it would only take a few replies each day to change their image in the minds of our generation.
There are a few reasons as to why Australian politicians may not use social media to their advantage. In comparison with America, voting is compulsory in Australia and so politicians do not need to engage people on the same level to obtain votes. Australia is an ageing population which means that there is an older generation who still receive most of their news via mainstream media. It makes sense to still use avenues like television and radio but Australians under 30 are the future of this country and it seems foolish not to appeal to them too. How can young Australians hope to identify with people like Tony Abbot when they can’t make the effort to connect via social media platforms?
Maybe politicians fear what social media can do? Social media platforms allow for a lot of freedom of speech and by participating fully in social media practices means accepting that they cannot completely control online culture. But if they created content which included parts of their everyday normalcy, it allows the public to connect with them on a more personal level. After all, aren't politicians supposed to represent the public? They tell us that they know what we want, so show us. By presenting to us that they really are members of the public who like Chinese food or the new Hunger Game movie, they’d be much easier to relate to and maybe even more likely to gain votes from those of us under 30.
Kevin Rudd has used social media in the past to his advantage. Last year we saw the following tweet:
Which links us to this image:
I love this! It shows us he is normal and does everyday things like shave. Plus, and we can all get a bit of a laugh out of Kevin Rudd taking a selfie. Positing it via Twitter and Instagram shows that he is connected across a range of platforms and that he is willing to connect with his followers.
If more politicians were like this, I think that I would be more inclined to take an interest in politics.
However, as Jericho (2012, p.269) points out in his book 'The Rise of The Fifth Estate: social media micro blogging in Australian politics', "For many politicians, the risk adverse nature of the professions... means that the benefit of engaging with social media... (means) that you need to imagine every one of your tweets written on the side of the Sydney Harbor Bridge." In other words, politicians are very aware that everything that say or do is seen by a lot of people and social media platforms allow thousands of users to see a post at a time. Posts can be deleted but it's the share/retweet button that is of major concern.
In the words of Jericho (2009, p. 297), "the key question remains whether politicians will go where the people are, or whether they will remain largely in the centre, trying to control the message?"
References
Jericho, G 2012, The Rise of The Fifth Estate: social media micro blogging in Australian politics, Scribe Publications, Carlton North
