From echo chamber to persuasive device? Rethinking the role of the Internet in campaigns

Abstract

Most of the e-campaigning literature claims that the Internet can reinforce political attitudes, but not change them. In this article, I analyze the issue through the receive−accept−sample (RAS) theory, which postulates that messages can change attitudes if they are both received and accepted by audiences. Based on qualitative elite interviews with 31 consultants and operatives involved in the 2008 United States presidential election, I argue that campaigns are finding new avenues to improve both reception and acceptance of their messages, and the implications merit close empirical scrutiny. The probability of message reception can be increased by citizens' propensity to seek out issue positions online and by diffusion through low-threshold activities by supporters; the probability of message acceptance can be augmented by video and the targeting of content; finally, indirect persuasion through interpersonal communication can increase the probability of both reception and acceptance.

Everyday elites, citizens, or extremists? Assessing the use and users of non-election political hashtags

“…As proposed by Vaccari (2012), the "natively digital" (Rogers, 2009) approach favored here is based on collection and analysis of "transactional data generated in real online interactions" (Vaccari, 2012, p. 123), thus providing an alternative to self-report data. The following section outlines the rationale employed for data collection and analysis.…”

Studying Organizations on Instagram

“…For instance, political parties and candidates use social media to mobilize their supporters to volunteer for their campaigns and also to vote for them (e.g., [37][38][39]). NGOs attempt to mobilize their supporters to donate money (e.g., [40]), and companies go online to mobilize their stakeholders to buy products, provide feedback on products, and participate in the creation of new products (e.g., [41,42]).…”

Obama’s 2012 Facebook Campaign: Political Communication in the Age of the Like Button

“…Interestingly, recent studies (e.g., Vaccari, 2013) show that online political campaigns have also become more efficient at improving reception and acceptance of political messages. This 320 is effectively done when individuals see information diffused through low-threshold activities by supporters, for example, seeing content shared by peers.…”