TikTok and Political Communication: The Latest Frontier of Politainment? A Case Study

Abstract

TikTok is without any doubt the most popular social media among Gen Zers. Originally born as a lip-syncing app, it can be exploited in different ways; as such, it represents a new fertile space for political communication. In this vein, previous studies have shown that politicians all over the planet are joining the platform as a tool to connect with younger audiences. This study examines the use of TikTok in the last presidential elections in Peru. Following an affordance-based approach, we analyze all the TikToks published by the main candidates (Pedro Castillo, Keiko Fujimori, Rafael Lopez Aliaga, Hernando de Soto, and George Forsyth) during the electoral campaign, to understand if and how candidates have integrated this platform as part of their electoral strategy and what kind of content they publish and share. Through a content analysis that combines quantitative and qualitative elements, we demonstrate that, although all the analyzed politicians have opened TikTok accounts, they do not seem to take full advantage of the platform’s affordances displaying a top-down communication style with almost no deliberative nor participative intentions. Political issues are almost absent since the platform is mostly used to display their personal life and enhance their political persona, with most of the content displaying a clear entertaining dimension. Some differences are discussed but, in general, results reveal that Peruvian candidates use TikTok almost uniquely for politainment.

Navigating digital platforms: a comparative study into Turkish political communication strategies on tiktok and twitch

“…Lastly, the entertainment category will be listed. It is, however, going to differ from Cervi et al's (2023) study. The previous study titled Entertainment as content that has no relation to politics and is shared for entertainment purposes only.…”

“…For both platforms, a coding scheme will be followed. This coding scheme was constructed and reorganized according to Cervi et al's (2023) methodology. This methodology was chosen because it was appropriate for analyzing the data of TikTok content.…”

“…Whereas the game frame involves how politicians are seeing politics as a battle or a war. This study will follow Cervi et al's (2023) methodology and adopt the personality category which involves content that highlights politicians" personal lives. Lastly, the entertainment category will be listed.…”

“…Therefore, Twitch is a significant platform for political actors" public construction. It was also noted that politicians have a constant need to reconnect with citizens, especially with young people who have immense voting potential (Cervi et al, 2023). To reach young voters, even governmental institutions created profiles on Twitch (Basu, 2020).…”

“…The paper focuses on the unique attributes of these platforms and establishes a comparison between the two by a coding scheme. This coding scheme has been constructed based on Cervi et al's (2023) methodological framework. It includes four themes: content, frequency, engagement, and interaction.…”