“Don’t Make Me Ratio You Again”: How Political Influencers Encourage Platformed Political Participation

Abstract

Ratioing describes when a reply earns more likes than an original post on social media. They also offer influencers opportunities to convert audience attention into political actions capable of temporarily shaping online discourse. Ratios are then one of many influencer-driven strategies that leverage platform features and affordances to direct audiences to specific actions that amplify the influencer’s content in the crowded social media entertainment market. Hasan Piker is one of the most popular political influencers on Twitch, which he uses as a base to organize and direct his audience into coordinated actions across multiple platforms. Piker reigns on Twitch, but has significantly less Twitter followers than all of his targets, meaning the ratio strategy prompts targeted actions that simultaneously increase his visibility. This article uses three case studies to highlight ratioing as a strategy for eliciting political participation, such as when Piker ratioed rivaling political influencers, a US Senator, and a famous rapper.

Political Influencers on Social Media: An Introduction

“…The study offers insights into prominent narratives and important actors connected to the Night Wolves' online activities. Harris et al (2023) present a case study of Twitch streamer Hasan Piker. Piker harnesses his follower power on Twitch to exert so-called ratioing of Twitter accounts.…”

The Political Influence of Lifestyle Influencers? Examining the Relationship Between Aspirational Social Media Use and Anti-Expert Attitudes and Beliefs

“…For example, wellness content on Instagram, known for depicting happy people adhering to western beauty ideals and neutral toned home goods (Monks et al, 2021;Trillò et al, 2021), promotes positive thinking and natural products as solutions to a wide range of physical and mental ailments, framing health as a personal responsibility while ignoring socio-economic systems that affect health outcomes (Chinn, Hasell & Hiaeshutter-Rice, 2023). Some aspirational content is explicitly political, actively attempting to persuade and mobilize (e.g., Harris et al, 2023). However, in much of this content, the political implications are not explicit and unlikely to be perceived as political except to those who are already deeply involved in politics (e.g., Eliasoph, 1998;Krupnikov & Ryan, 2022).…”

“…There is increasing research on the role political influencers have in engaging people, especially young people, in politics. Political influencers can build meaningful communities, effectively simplify political information, mobilize political participation, and can even increase interest in politics (Dekoninck & Schmuck, 2022, 2023; Harff, 2022; Harris et al, 2023; Schmuck et al, 2022). There is less research on how lifestyle influencers and their aspirational content might shape attitudes about politics, but extant research suggests they do contribute meaningfully to the political information environment.…”