PEMANFAATAN MEDIA SOSIAL SEBAGAI SARANA PACARAN JARAK JAUH DALAM MEMPERTAHANKAN HUBUNGAN (Analisis Kasus Pada Mahasiswa/I Jurusan Ilmu Komunikasi, FISIP Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang Angkatan 2015)

This research is built on long-distance dating which currently becomes a social trend where many students have this kind of relationship as a consequence of their education or employment placement. Social media becomes a primary need to maintain good communication with their partner and also have a role in increasing trust and preserve the relationship. Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang is one of the favorite institutions in Malang, which many, from locals to those out of town, to study. The fact that a lot of these students move from their hometown to Malang for their studies results in long-distance relationships. This study aims to discover the benefits of social media as a communication tool in a long-distance relationship to maintain the relationships faced by students of the Department of Communication Sciences class of 2015, FISIP University of Muhammadiyah Malang, and their partner. This research uses a qualitative approach with descriptive-qualitative methods. Interviews are conducted with the subjects of the research, to be specific two couples or four people. Researchers conducted questions and answers with the subjects through social media regarding communication methods, social media as a communications tool, conflict, and the solution, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of social media in long-distance relationships. Based on the collected data from the interviews, it is found that in communicating research subjects uses Whatsapp as the primary social media with various benefits namely as an alternative tool for long-distance relationship couples in maintaining their relationships, as a tool for resolving conflicts causes by limitations of verbal communication while undergoing long-distance relationship, as a tool to facilitate long-distance relationship couples to communicate easily and more effectively, as a tool for suppressing communication misunderstandings, and as a substitution of face to face meeting while undergoing long-distance dating