Abstract

LUZURIAGA-URIBE, Estefanía. Tweeting for Votes: a Longitudinal Perspective on Social Media Use and it’s Effects on Politics. Comuni@cción [online]. 2023, vol.14, n.4, pp.336-347.  Epub Dec 26, 2023. ISSN 2219-7168.  http://dx.doi.org/10.33595/2226-1478.14.4.972.

Political campaigns on social media constitute a fundamental component of contemporary democracy. However, there is limited evidence regarding the evolution of the usability of these platforms in Latin American contexts. This article presents the results of a longitudinal investigation comparing the use of social media, specifically Twitter, by candidates in the 2019 sectional elections and the 2021 national elections in Ecuador. The methodology combines content analysis and discourse analysis of available resources (hashtags, photos, and videos) and the main themes. The objective is to comprehend the effects of communication dynamics on Twitter during electoral campaigns in Ecuador, focusing on the structure of relationships generated by messages and their relationship with social events. The results demonstrate a high usability of the resources offered by the platform for discourse projection. Thematic elements refer to campaign activities, partisan content, campaign-related slogans, or self-promotional phrases. In conclusion, the identified patterns during the elections and the evolution of these findings contribute to understanding the role of social media in campaigns, especially in developing countries.

Keywords : Political communication; political leadership; digital media; power; political parties.

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