Michael Bossetta presents

Social Media and Politics

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  June 13, 2021

  Modern Political Campaigns and Social Media in the United States, with Dr. Michael D. Cohen

  Dr. Michael D. Cohen, CEO of Cohen Research Group and Lecturer at Johns Hopkins University, discusses his new book Modern Political Campaigns: How Professionalism, Technology, and Speed Have Revolutionized Elections. We talk about how communication technologies have shifted political campaigns from being party-centered to candidate-centered. We also discuss various aspects of political campaigns covered in the book, such as: how political campaigns conduct opposition research, the role of data and analytics in the modern campaign, and the value social media can provide to a political campaign.  Buy Modern Political Campaigns here and use code RLFANDF30 for 30% off! 

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  June 4, 2021

  Social Media Communication in the EU, with Tom Moylan

  Tom Moylan, Communication Strategist at the Directorate-General for Communication at the European Commission, shares his personal reflections on EU digital communication. We discuss the value that social media can bring in communicating the European Union to citizens, as well as how EU institutions have evolved their communication strategy over time. Tom also shares his experiences as a speechwriter in EU trade policy, and how speech writing compares with social media communication. We also discuss current trends in EU institutional communication, and what lessons might be learned from coronavirus pandemic moving forward.

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  May 16, 2021

  The Cultural Sociology of Political Performance, Icons, and Social Media, with Prof. Jeffrey Alexander

  Jeffrey Alexander, Professor of Sociology at Yale University, discusses his cultural sociology approach to political performance and cultural icons. We start out with the concept of fusion, and how political actors work to achieve it through the elements of political performance. Then, we turn to a discussion of objects, affordances, and the power of political icons.

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  May 2, 2021

  Digital Media Infrastructures and Tech Platforms, with Dr. Jean-Christophe Plantin

  Dr. Jean-Christophe Plantin, Associate Professor in Media and Communications at the London School of Economics, explains the concept of media infrastructures. We discuss Dr. Plantin's research on digital platforms, infrastructures, and how tech giants like Facebook and Google increasingly blend those two concepts. We also discuss the infrastructure of WeChat, and get into Dr. Plantin's ongoing work into the concept of programmable infrastructures - which explores how the hardware of the tech industry is becoming increasingly disagreggated and modular.

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  April 18, 2021

  Deliberation in Practice and Pandemics, with Ieva Česnulaitytė

  Ieva Česnulaitytė, Policy Analyst at the OECD, discusses her research on representative deliberative processes. We break down some of the key models of deliberative processes, when they tend to be used, and how their success can be measured. We also discuss how the coronavirus pandemic has moved deliberative processes online. As social distancing limits the ability for citizens to attend in-person events, how are deliberative processes being carried out online?

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  March 28, 2021

  Social Media Influencers and Political Campaigns, with Madeline V. Twomey

  Madeline V. Twomey, President at Rufus and Mane, discusses how social media influencers can benefit political campaigns (and vice versa). Madeline forged digital influencer partnerships for Joe Biden's presidential campaign and inauguration. She shares her experiences working with influencer programs and her thoughts on best practices moving forward. We talk about the value that influencers can provide to campaigns, how their working relationship looks like in practice, and how storytelling can help non-political influencers break into political topics.

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  February 21, 2021

  Digital Politics in Canada: Parties, Memes, and the Courts, with Dr. Tamara Small

  Dr. Tamara A. Small, Associate Professor in Political Science at the University of Guelph, discusses her research on social media and politics in Canada. We start out with her latest edited volume Digital Politics in Canada: Promises and Realities (2020, University of Toronto Press). We then dive into Dr. Small's research on Canadian party leaders' use of Twitter, citizens' sharing of memes about Stephen Harper and Justin Trudeau, and how Canadian courts use social media. We also cover how journalists live-tweet about court cases, and the Canadian courts' struggle to adapt during Covid-19.

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  February 7, 2021

  Information Theory, Algorithms, and Political Polarization, with Prof. Martin Hilbert

  Martin Hilbert, Professor of Communication at UC-Davis, discusses his research on algorithms and polarization. Prof. Hilbert introduces information theory and how it can be applied to studying the transfer of emotions via algorithms. We break down some of Prof. Hilbert's recent studies, as well as his current thinking around detaching from social algorithms.

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  January 24, 2021

  Digital Ads for Political Mobilization and Persuasion, with Nick Ahamed

  Nick Ahamed, Director of Analytics at Priorities USA, shares his research on the effectiveness of digital ads for increasing voter turnout and support for Democrats. We discuss the field and survey experiments that Priorities USA has been running to find the optimal messaging strategies, targeting approaches, and treatment lengths for political social media ads during elections.

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  December 20, 2020

  2020 Year in Review! Social Media and Politics, with Dr. Anamaria Dutceac Segesten

  Dr. Anamaria Dutceac Segesten joins for the 5th Annual Social Media and Politics Year in Review! We answer listener questions and present six gifts, each representing big events that shaped social media and politics this year.

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  November 29, 2020

  Audience Development, Online Political Journalism, and Social Media, with Sofia Diogo Mateus

  Sofia Diogo Mateus, Audience Development Editor at Politico Europe, discusses the role of social media in online political journalism. We talk about the importance of audience development, the tools used to assist in online publishing and measuring engagement, and the benefits and pitfalls of user generated content (UGC). We also discuss Sofia's work as Head of Facebook at Deutsche Welle, strategies around content moderation, and the value of reporting political news for international audiences.

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  November 15, 2020

  Incivility, Intolerance, and Misinformation Sharing on Social Media and News Websites, with Dr. Patricía Rossini

  Dr. Patricía Rossini, Derby Fellow in the Department of Communication and Media at the University of Liverpool, discusses her latest research on informal political talk online. We break down differences between incivility and intolerance in online discussions, as well as misinformation sharing across Facebook and WhatsApp.

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  October 25, 2020

  Instagram for Political Campaigning, Agenda Setting, and the 2020 US Election

  Dr. Terri Towner, Professor of Political Science at Oakland University, discusses her research on political campaigning and information on Instagram. We also give first impressions from the last presidential debate between Trump and Biden, and break down some poll results about citizens' social media use during the coronavirus pandemic.

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  October 4, 2020

  Bad News, Social Media, and Digital Campaigning in Britain, with Dr. Mark Pack

  Dr. Mark Pack, President of the Liberal Democrats, guests to discuss his new book: "Bad News: What the Headlines Don't Tell Us." We talk about some of the flaws of election campaign coverage and how to be better consumers of news using social media. Dr. Pack also shares his insights on digital campaigning in Britain, where he ran digital operations for the LibDems in the 2001 and 2005 general elections.

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  September 20, 2020

  The Hype Machine: Political Implications of the Social Media Industrial Complex, with Prof. Sinan Aral

  Sinan Aral, David Austin Professor of Management at MIT and DIrector of MIT's Initiative on the Digital Economy, discusses his new book "The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health—and How We Must Adapt." Prof. Aral breaks down key theoretical concepts from the book, which outlines some of the fundemental mechanisms for how social media platforms operate. We also discuss the science behind these concepts and they implications they have for elections, politics, and society.

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  September 6, 2020

  Data-Driven Political Campaigning in Germany, with Dr. André Haller and Simon Kruschinski

  Dr. André Haller (University of Applied Sciences Kufstein Tyrol) and Simon Kruschinski (University of Mainz) share their research into data-driven political campaigning in Germany. We discuss the key political, legal, and cultural factors that influence German politicians digital campaigning, differences in organic posts versus paid advertisements, and how social media platforms have been used by fringe political actors.

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  August 23, 2020

  China's Influence Operations, Propaganda, and Disinformation, with Vanessa Molter

  Vanessa Molter, Graduate Research Assistant at the Stanford Internet Observatory, breaks down her new report: "Telling China's Story: The Chinese Communist Party's Campaign to Shape Global Narratives." We discuss what researchers currently know about China's influence operations on social media, how they compare with Russia's disinformation strategies, and dive into the report's three case studies: the 2019 Hong Kong protests, the 2020 Taiwanese presidential elections, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

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  August 9, 2020

  Data Science across Academia, Industry, and Progressive Campaigns, with Dr. Solomon Messing

  Dr. Solomon Messing, Chief Scientist at ACRONYM and Affiliated Researcher at Georgetown University, shares his insights on data science across academia, the tech industry, and political campaigning space. We discuss how computational social science methods have changed over time, and how system architectures can be built to protect social media users' privacy. We also chat about current trends that Dr. Messing is observing at ACRONYM relating to the persuasiveness and cost of political ads on social media.

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  July 19, 2020

  Digital Media, Democracy, and the Retooling of Politics, with Dr. Andreas Jungherr

  Dr. Andreas Jungherr, Assistant Professor for Social Science Data Collection and Analysis at the University of Konstanz, guests to discuss his latest book, "Retooling Politics: How Digital Media are Shaping Democracy." We chat about the state of social media research in political science and political communication, and what we currently know about echo chambers, polarization, and election prediction.

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  July 5, 2020

  Digital Organizing for Progressive Campaigns and Advocacy, with Ned Howey

  Ned Howey, CEO of Tectonica, discusses the international firm's approach to digital organizing for progressive campaigns. We focus on how Tectonica's digital solutions integrate with NationBuilder, some key principles of website design, and how to engage supporters with an authentic message and tone.

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