HOW SOCIAL MEDIA HAS SHAPED 21ST CENTURY POLITICS? MEDIA POPULISM

In 2019 General elections in India, about 1/3 of voters cast their first vote ever. These group of young men and women ranged from anywhere between 18-21 years of age. Social media has reduced the gap between the on-ground reality and what is portrayed. If we take digital media, for instance, there are chances that it can be rigged and favourable news be put out. But Social media sites revolve around the thought of freedom of expression and net neutrality. In the past, we have seen futile attempts of information suppression have had no effects and the truth reaches out to the masses. That’s the beauty of social media. This has contributed to a culture of answerability and accountability on the part of the politicians.

The political houses in a bid to attract the voters launch massive online campaigns, curate content to appeal to the youth, make their online presence felt, actively engage on social media platforms. Sentiment analysis is a key tool which helps politicians adjust their campaign because this is the only method via which they obtain a first-hand data of how their actions are affecting the users and thus this can be applied on a larger scale as to understand the mindset of the voters.

Say, for example, our Politician Mr X belonging to a political party Y holds a rally and speaks on a particular topic. His team runs the sentiment analysis and obtains the reactions to his speech. By this Mr X can get an insight and make changes or improve upon his strategy and up the chances of his win.

The internet has created channels of communication that play a key role in circulating news, and social media has the power to change not just the message, but the dynamics of political corruption, values, and the dynamics of conflict in politics. Through the use of social media in the election processes, global conflict, and extreme politics, diplomacy both in the United States and around the world has become less private and susceptive to the public perception. The idea of “new media populism” encompasses how citizens can include disenfranchised citizens, and allow the public to have an engaged and active role in political discourse. New media, including social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, can enhance people’s access to political information.

India is the world's biggest market for Facebook (FB) and its messaging platform WhatsApp. It's also one of Twitter's (TWTR) most important markets. The country's vote will present these companies with their sternest test yet. Gilles Verniers, a professor of political science at India's Ashoka University, said that social media has become "a constant megaphone" for political parties to amplify their messages.