Title: How Social Media Has Changed Politics
Headings: How Social Media Has Changed Politics
How Social Media Has Changed Politics
10 Ways Twitter and Facebook Have Altered Campaigns
Direct Contact With Voters
Advertising Without Paying For Advertising
How Campaigns Go Viral
Tailoring the Message to the Audience
Fundraising
Controversy
Feedback
Weighing Public Opinion
It's Hip
The Power of Many

Content: How Social Media Has Changed Politics
Humanities › Issues
How Social Media Has Changed Politics
10 Ways Twitter and Facebook Have Altered Campaigns
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By
Tom Murse
Tom Murse is a former political reporter and current Managing Editor of daily paper "LNP," and weekly political paper "The Caucus," both published by LNP Media in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. our editorial process
Tom Murse
Updated August 29, 2019
The use of social media in politics including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube has dramatically changed the way campaigns are run and how Americans interact with their elected officials. The prevalence of social media in politics has made elected officials and candidates more accountable and accessible to voters. And the ability to publish content and broadcast it to millions of people instantaneously allows campaigns to carefully manage their candidates’ images based on rich sets of analytics in real time and at almost no cost. 01
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Direct Contact With Voters
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
Social media tools including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube allow politicians to speak directly to voters without spending a dime. Using social media allows politicians to circumvent the traditional method of reaching voters through paid advertising or earned media. 02
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Advertising Without Paying For Advertising
YouTube
It has become fairly common for political campaigns to produce commercials and publish them for free on YouTube instead of, or in addition to, paying for time on television or the radio. Often, journalists covering campaigns will write about those YouTube ads, essentially broadcasting their message to a wider audience at no cost to the politicians. 03
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How Campaigns Go Viral
Bethany Clarke / Getty Images
Twitter and Facebook have become instrumental in organizing campaigns. They allow like-minded voters and activists to easily share news and information such as campaign events with each other.