Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum
The role of social media at electoral events is much speculated upon. Wide-ranging effects, and often critical evaluations, are attributed to commentary, discussions, and advertising on Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, and many other platforms. But the specific effects of these social media during campa...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cogitatio
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Media and Communication |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6653 |
| _version_ | 1797938385338236928 |
|---|---|
| author | Theresa Reidy Jane Suiter |
| author_facet | Theresa Reidy Jane Suiter |
| author_sort | Theresa Reidy |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The role of social media at electoral events is much speculated upon. Wide-ranging effects, and often critical evaluations, are attributed to commentary, discussions, and advertising on Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, and many other platforms. But the specific effects of these social media during campaigns, especially referendum campaigns, remain under-studied. This thematic issue is a very valuable contribution for precisely this reason. Using the 2018 abortion referendum in Ireland as an illustrative case, this commentary argues for greater research on social media at referendum campaigns, more critical evaluation of the claims and counterclaims about social media effects, often aired widely without substantive evidence, and, finally, for robust, coordinated cross-national regulation of all digital platforms in line with global democratic norms. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:59:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4c92a8390463479bb9307c4502a0817c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2183-2439 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:59:04Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Cogitatio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Media and Communication |
| spelling | doaj.art-4c92a8390463479bb9307c4502a0817c2023-01-31T11:41:56ZengCogitatioMedia and Communication2183-24392023-01-01111818510.17645/mac.v11i1.66532894Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion ReferendumTheresa Reidy0Jane Suiter1Department of Government and Politics, University College Cork, IrelandSchool of Communications, Dublin City University, IrelandThe role of social media at electoral events is much speculated upon. Wide-ranging effects, and often critical evaluations, are attributed to commentary, discussions, and advertising on Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, and many other platforms. But the specific effects of these social media during campaigns, especially referendum campaigns, remain under-studied. This thematic issue is a very valuable contribution for precisely this reason. Using the 2018 abortion referendum in Ireland as an illustrative case, this commentary argues for greater research on social media at referendum campaigns, more critical evaluation of the claims and counterclaims about social media effects, often aired widely without substantive evidence, and, finally, for robust, coordinated cross-national regulation of all digital platforms in line with global democratic norms.https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6653abortioncampaign regulationreferendumreferendum campaignsocial media |
| spellingShingle | Theresa Reidy Jane Suiter Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum Media and Communication abortion campaign regulation referendum referendum campaign social media |
| title | Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum |
| title_full | Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum |
| title_fullStr | Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum |
| title_full_unstemmed | Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum |
| title_short | Does Social Media Use Matter? A Case Study of the 2018 Irish Abortion Referendum |
| title_sort | does social media use matter a case study of the 2018 irish abortion referendum |
| topic | abortion campaign regulation referendum referendum campaign social media |
| url | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6653 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT theresareidy doessocialmediausematteracasestudyofthe2018irishabortionreferendum AT janesuiter doessocialmediausematteracasestudyofthe2018irishabortionreferendum |