The Facebook Influence

Amid purported fake news, increased social media usage, and the 24-hour news cycle, the way politicians and political organizations communicate, and how we, as an audience, receive and perceive that communication has become more important than ever. Politicians worldwide are investing effort and time into the creation and curation of social media profiles, often with the help of trained staff. Social media has evolved through modern-day technology on a local, national, and international scale. One of the most important platforms of social media is Facebook. Across the globe, Facebook draws in a total of more than 2.13 billion monthly active users (Noyes). The United States alone touts a total of 214 million Facebook users, with 39.4 million of those users representing the age group of 18 to 24 (Statista). Looking at this number, it is not difficult to see what draws political candidates to social media sites like Facebook. Politicians can often market themselves to a wide group of people for a very little cost. This study uses a survey to measure the feelings of a college-aged voter when prompted with a screenshot of a Facebook profile for a candidate. Surveys are used to test whether a “Facebook influence” exists when evaluating candidates using adjectives like trustworthy, modern, legitimate, credible, convincing, and official