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Contemporary Political Participation: The "Io Sono Giorgia" Remix

Political participation is defined to be any citizens’ activity that affects politics (van Deth, 2016). According to Campbell and Kwak (2010), nowadays political participation can take on many forms and is fostered by mobile web application and online political expression. This view is shared by Vaccari and Valeriani (2021), who argue that social media are playing a key role in the increase in political participation in Western democracies. As social media allow for alternative ways for opinion expression and information gathering, users can engage in political participation by obtaining political information, creating user-generated political content, and expressing their political views (Yamamoto, Kushin & Dalisay, 2013).

The term “meme” refers to information in the form of songs, videos, catchphrases, or images that propagate between individuals and generations through imitation (Dawkins, 2016). These Internet memes encourage mass participation as they are defined as “extremely appealing to the collective” (Moreno-Almeida, 2020: p. 1546). Political memes are a sub-genre of the classic internet meme and address aspects of political phycology and ideology (Wiggins, 2019). Shiftman (2014) defined the creation of political memes as an important form of online political participation. Moreover, Seiffert-Brockmann and colleagues (2018) argued political memes could constitute a new means of political participation as a whole and located them between political expression, wasteful online games, and cultural evolution.

The “Io Sono Giorgia” remixed song was a popular political meme in Italy and, arguably, offers a great example of political participation. On October 19th 2019, Giorgia Meloni, the political leader of the right-wing Italian party Fratelli d’Italia, held a rally in Piazza San Giovanni in Rome. Her speech touched upon more conservative views on traditional family values, civil rights, and LGBTQ+ marriages, and, to portray her position, Giorgia Meloni used sentences such as “I am a mother”, "I am a woman", “I am a Christian” (Sky TG24, 2019). After the rally, the speech was initially ridiculed by social media influencer Tommaso Zorzi before being remixed and published on YouTube by a collaborative group of artists known as MEM & J (Youtube.com, 2018). The video, which aimed to demise Giorgia Meloni and make fun of her conservative speech, quickly went viral and became an internet sensation, currently holding over 11.5 million views and still counting.

Despite its offensive aim, Giorgia Meloni herself admitted enjoying the song and occasionally singing along (Sky TG24, 2018). This confirms a study conducted by Buie and colleagues (2021), who found that conservatives tend to find political memes as more funny and less offensive when compared to liberals due to their cavalier humour beliefs.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Giorgia Meloni (@giorgiameloni)

Through their humorous and often offensive nature, memes allow citizens to express themselves politically in a never seen before way (McLoughlin & Southern, 2020). Especially in countries where political participation is low, political memes allow citizens to express their agreement or rejection of political realities, reflecting the technological affordances of the internet in a society troubled by political change. As memes are predominantly user-generated, further research is warranted to explore their impact on viewers’ emotions and political attitudes.

References:

Buie, H., Ford, T., Olah, A., Argüello, C., & Mendiburo-Seguel, A. (2021). Where’s Your Sense of Humor? Political Identity Moderates Evaluations of Disparagement Humor. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations.

Campbell, S. W. & Kwak, N. (2010) Mobile Communication and Civic Life: Linking Patterns of Use to Civic and Political Engagement. Journal of Communication, 60(3), pp. 536–555.

Dawkins, R. (2016). The Selfish Gene. (40th Anniversary Edition.). Oxford University Press.

McLoughlin, L., & Southern, R. (2020). By Any Memes Necessary? Small Political Acts, Incidental Exposure and Memes During the 2017 UK General Election. The British Journal Of Politics And International Relations, 23(1), pp. 60-84.

MEM & J. (2020, October 27). Io Sono Giorgia (Giorgia Meloni Remix). [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhwUMDX4K8o.

Moreno-Almeida, C. (2020). Memes as Snapshots of Participation: The Role of Digital Amateur Activists in Authoritarian Regimes. New Media & Society, 23(6), pp. 1545-1566.

Seiffert-Brockmann J, Diehl, T., & Dobusch, L. (2018) Memes as Games: The Evolution of a Digital Discourse Online. New Media & Society, 20, pp. 2862–2879.

Shifman, L. (2014). The Cultural Logic of Photo-Based Meme Genres. Journal of Visual Culture, 13, pp. 307-313.

Sky TG24. (2019). 'Io Sono Giorgia', Virale il Remix del Discorso di Meloni. Tg24.sky.it. Retrieved 10 December 2021, from https://tg24.sky.it/politica/2019/11/12/meloni-canta-io-sono-giorgia.

Vaccari, C., & Valeriani, A. (2021). Outside the Bubble: Social Media and Political Participation in Western Democracies. New York: Oxford University Press.

van Deth, J. (2016). What Is Political Participation?. Oxford Research Encyclopedia Of Politics.

Wiggins, B. E. (2019). The Discursive Power of Memes in Digital Culture: Ideology, Semiotics, and Intertextuality. Routledge.

Yamamoto, M., Kushin, M., & Dalisay, F. (2013). Social Media and Mobiles as Political Mobilization Forces for Young Adults: Examining the Moderating Role of Online Political Expression in Political Participation. New Media & Society, 17 (6), pp. 880-898.

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Instagram Loves Joe

The 2016 US presidential elections were characterised by traditional American campaign activities such as door-to-door canvassing, TV debates, press conferences, and several town rallies (Gillies, 2018). In that climate, Donald Trump emerged through the crowd as an irreverent yet captivating media personality who ran controversial rallies, winning in a shocking, dramatic, and newsworthy way (Faris et al., 2017).

Fast forward four years, the Covid 19 pandemic made in-person campaigning a health risk, undermining Donald Trump’s successful strategy, and forcing both candidates to rely completely on having a clear online campaign and an effective social media strategy, especially for the Democrat party (Bradner & Merica, 2020). In fact, the start of this digital battle saw the democratic candidate Joe Biden at a disadvantage, having only a third of Donald Trump’s established social media following already filled with influential conservative personalities (Heilweil, 2020a; Heilweil, 2020b).

Biden’s campaign team aimed to reach new audiences anywhere they could. Christian Tom, the head of digital partnership for Biden’s campaign, explained that the idea of engaging influencers was not an afterthought, but instead it served the purpose of getting influencers’ target audiences to think about Joe Biden (Heilweil, 2020a).

“The idea that influencers are, in some cases, the people who have the most credibility or bring the most bona fides in people’s social feeds is a really powerful one and something that we, as the campaign, want to embrace.” Christian Tom (retrieved in Heilweil, 2020a)

Through the implementation of an Instagram influencer strategy, Biden targeted several niche audiences by filming Instagram Lives with a wide range of internet personalities such as Bethany Mota, Keke Palmer and Elle Walker.

The light-hearted and personal style of the conversations allowed Biden to interact with new audiences on a intimate level while still getting some talking points across on relevant topics such as his approach to leadership and his plans to combat systematic racism in the United States.

Research has shown that a candidate’s image plays a key factor in affecting voters’ behavioural attitudes and thus election outcomes (Enli, 2017). According to Nai and Maier (2021), knowing a candidate’s personality and character provides voters with vital cues about their trustworthiness as well as their future political performance if elected. Social media platforms are a valuable tool to construct and portray a candidate’s image, while still acting as an important source of information (Enli, 2017).

Through the use of an empathic tone, a wholesome style and unconventional means, Biden’s campaign was the opposite of Trump’s controversial and anger-filled tweets (Bradner & Merica, 2020). However, there is no denying that Donald Trump knew how to hold a crowd, and some would argue that the substantial absence of in-person campaigning events allowed Joe Biden to avoid one of his infamous gaffs and the bad press that would have followed (Suciu, 2020). This begs the question, if social distancing restrictions are definitively lifted by the 2024 US presidential elections, will a well-thought social media strategy be all it takes for Joe Biden to win again?

References:

Bradner, E., & Merica, D. (2020). Biden's campaign rushes to blunt Trump's digital advantage. CNN. Retrieved 8 December 2021, from https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/09/politics/joe-biden-digital-campaign/index.html.

Enli, G. (2017). Twitter as Arena for the Authentic Outsider: Exploring the Social Media Campaigns of Trump and Clinton in the 2016 US Presidential Election. European Journal of Communication (London), 32(1), 50–61.

Faris, R. M., Roberts, H., Etling, B., Bourassa, N., Zuckerman, E., & Benkler, Y. (2017). Partisanship, Propaganda, and Disinformation: Online Media and the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. Berkman Klein Center Research Publication 2017-6, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3019414

Gillies. (2018). Political Marketing in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election (1st ed. 2018.). Springer International Publishing.

Heilweil, R. (2020a). Inside the Biden Campaign’s Surprising Influencer Strategy. Vox. Retrieved 5 December 2021, from https://www.vox.com/recode/21429755/influencers-joe-biden-democrats-pacs-social-media-facebook-instagram-campaign.

Heilweil, R. (2020b). Right-Wing Media Thrives on Facebook. Whether It Rules is More Complicated. Vox. Retrieved 8 December 2021, from https://www.vox.com/recode/21419328/facebook-conservative-bias-right-wing-crowdtangle-election.

Nai, A. & Maier, J. (2021). Can Anyone Be Objective About Donald Trump? Assessing the Personality of Political Figures. Journal of Elections, Public Opinion and Parties, 31(3), 283–308.

Suciu, P. (2020). Social Media Proved Crucial For Joe Biden – It Allowed Him To Connect With Young Voters And Avoid His Infamous Gaffes. Forbes. Retrieved 9 December 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2020/11/17/social-media-proved-crucial-for-joe-biden--it-allowed-him-to-connect-with-young-voters-and-avoid-his-infamous-gaffes/?sh=640858934148.

[image 1] - https://www.vox.com/recode/21429755/influencers-joe-biden-democrats-pacs-social-media-facebook-instagram-campaign

[image 2] - https://www.instagram.com/tv/CBd6ymSl78s/

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Fake News: Are Social Media a Breeding Ground for the Spread of Misinformation?

Although more traditional outlets such as newspapers and television channels remain popular among citizens, social media platforms are increasingly being used across demographics as a primary source of information (Westerman, Spence & Van Der Heide, 2014). According to research, over 60% of American adults access news on social media (Gottfried & Shearer, 2016), but only a mere 17% of adults proved to be able to detect fake news (Moravec, Minas & Dennis, 2019). As social media provide countless sources of information and allow users to interact with each other through the generation and sharing of content, it is vital to understand the role these platforms play in spreading fake news.

The trustworthiness and reliability of news have always been put into question, even long before the advent of the Internet (Flanagin & Metzger, 2000). However, it could be argued that the lack in social media content of any third-party filtering, fact-checking rules, or editorial judgement – found in both traditional print and broadcast news media – has caused for an increase in concern surrounding the issue of the spread of misinformation and “fake news” (Allcott & Gentzkow, 2017).

"The Internet is designed not to be controlled – ‘information wants to be free" (Flanagin & Metzger, 2000, p. 516)

Social media platforms, such as TikTok, are famous for having any sort of content go viral overnight and thus seen by thousands of people in a matter of a few hours if not minutes. With over 24 million active users in the US alone, the TikTok algorithm enables individual users without a reliable reputation to reach as many viewers as CNN or Fox News, and this poses as a serious threat for the spread of accurate political news (Allcott & Gentzkow, 2017).

The main issue with content going viral is the fact that users could wittingly or unwittingly share content that is false and once it is out, it could be difficult to be stopped. Arguably political content is shared faster as it relies on strong confirmation bias. According to Moravec and colleagues (2019), individuals in a hedonistic mindset are less likely to critically assess information if it supports their existing beliefs, affecting the amount of time in which information is accepted as truth and then shared. They are undeterred by the possibility of it being fake news.

Like many other platforms, TikTok ensures being vigilant in monitoring the content being shared and removing any material violating its Community Guidelines (TikTok.com, 2020). However, as the platform allows for irony and satire, it is an impossible task to fact-check the abundancy of videos being shared everyday by its millions of users.

The outcome of the 2016 US presidential elections initiated a new conversation about the influence that fake news and misinformation can have on political matters (Van Duyn & Collier, 2019). Although digitalisation is now part of society and citizens increasingly turn to the internet when seeking information, it is crucial to address the negative impact fake news is having on political trust. Since transparency and freedom of information are pillars of democracy, it is a democratic responsibility to shed light on this issue.

References:

Allcott, H., & Gentzkow, M. (2017). Social Media and Fake News in the 2016 Election. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 31(2), p.211–235.

Flanagin, A. J. & Metzger, M. J. (2000). Perceptions of Internet Information Credibility. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Vol. 77 (3), p. 515–540.

Gottfried, J., & Shearer, E. (2016). News Use across Social Medial Platforms 2016. Pew Research Center.

Moravec, P. L., Minas, R. K. & Dennis, A. R. (2019). Fake News on Social Media: People Believe What They Want to Believe When it Makes No Sense At All. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 43(4), p. 1–36.

Tiktok.com. (2020). Community Guidelines. Retrieved 4 December 2021, from https://www.tiktok.com/community-guidelines?lang=en.

Van Duyn, E., & Collier, J. (2019). Priming and fake news: The effects of elite discourse on evaluations of news media. Mass Communication and Society, 22(1), 29-48.

Wall Street Journal (2020, February 7). Why TikTok’s Growing Political Content Is Raising Concerns | WSJ. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9ZzAj5PKXM

Westerman, D., Spence, P. R., Van Der Heide, B. (2014). Social Media as Information Source: Recency of Updates and Credibility of Information. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 19 (2), p. 171–183.

[image 1] - https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3065103/how-coronavirus-testing-social-medias-efforts-stem-flow-fake-news

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The Power of Celebrities' Influence on Politics

Founded in 1996, the “Rock the Vote” campaign made celebrities like Madonna, Lenny Kravitz, and Ozzy Osbourne the public face of voting, in an attempt to exploit popular culture as an incentive for political participation (Cloonan & Street, 1998). This initiative specifically aimed to encourage voting from the 18-29 age demographics, as evidence surrounding youth politics showed that younger generations were less likely to vote than older generations (Mullen, 2014; Cloonan & Street, 1998). Since then, singers and movie stars have continued to promote the importance of voting among their fans and, with the advent of social media and its ability to convey rapid activism, it is now possible to have a simpler transaction of information and share more partisan messages (Kelly, 2020b).

Focusing on the 2020 US Presidential Elections, many celebrities, including pop singer Lizzo, took part in the #RunwaytothePolls campaign. Lizzo’s call to action offered voting resources while encouraging fans to share videos of themselves mailing their ballots or going to the voting polls to the beat of her new song, titled “Vote” (Kelly, 2020a).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lizzo (@lizzobeeating)

While many celebrities, such as Selena Gomez and Michelle Obama, opted to share a picture on Instagram featuring the ‘I Voted’ sticker, others were more direct. In fact, celebrities like Taylor Swift and Jennifer Aniston did not only encourage their followers to vote but, by openly featuring the names of democratic candidates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in their photos, were clear on whom they were going to be casting their vote for, urging others to do the same.

The 2020 Election Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS) reported that the 2020 presidential elections were the most voted elections in the past 120 years, with 67.7% of the voting age population casting a vote (Election Assistance Commission, 2020), and an increase of 10% in youth voters’ turnout (Noor, 2020). Additionally, the overall traffic registered on the Vote.org website was at an all-time high after many celebrities, including Kylie Jenner, put the link to register for voting in their Instagram bio.

Throughout the years, marketing research consistently highlighted the power celebrities hold on their target audiences due to their perceived trustworthiness and the role-model figures that they embody (Martín-Santana & Beerli-Palacio, 2013). Although there is no data showing the actual impact celebrities had on US voters, according to Nota Gilbert, Vote.org’s sector of partnerships, “there’s no world in which it’s not a net positive on voter engagement” (Schwartz, 2020). Celebrities can be seen acting as a valuable ally for politicians and as a useful tool for their campaigning and marketing teams, as well as a beacon for young people who are new to navigating political and social issues (Morin, Ivory & Tubbs, 2012; Nisbett & DeWalt, 2016).

The ability to increase the political and social awareness of young voters is a democratic responsibility. Thus, it is imperative for politicians and political campaigning experts to explore the mediums and means most used by younger generations to understand, and subsequently act on, the best strategies to maintain high interest levels and engagement around politics (Nisbett & DeWalt, 2016).

References:

Cloonan, M., & Street, J. (1998). Rock the Vote: Popular Culture and Politics. Politics, 18(1), 33-38.

Election Assistance Commission. (2020). Election Administration and Voting Survey 2020 Comprehensive Report: A Report from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to the 117th Congress. Retrieved 24 November 20201, from https://www.eac.gov/sites/default/files/document_library/files/2020_EAVS_Report_Final_508c.pdf

Kelly, A. (2020a). Lizzo and More Celebrities say "It's Time to Vote!" with New #RunwayToThePolls Challenge -. L'Officiel USA. Retrieved 23 November 2021, from https://www.lofficielusa.com/politics-culture/instagram-runway-to-the-polls-challenge-celebrity-lizzo-vote-song.

Kelly, A. (2020b). The Power of Celebrity Influence: From Rock the Vote to Social Media Activism – Madonna Se. L'Officiel USA. Retrieved 23 November 2021, from https://www.lofficielusa.com/politics-culture/rock-the-vote-celebrity-election-campaign-social-media

Martín-Santana, J. D. & Beerli-Palacio, A. (2013). Magazine Advertising: Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Celebrity Advertising. Journal of Promotion Management, 19(2), 139–166.

Morin, D. T., Ivory, J. D., & Tubbs, M. (2012). Celebrity and Politics: Effects of Endorser Credibility and Sex on Voter Attitudes, Perceptions, and Behaviors. The Social Science Journal (Fort Collins), Vol. 49 (4), p. 413–420.

Mullen, T. A. (2014). Rock the Vote: A Case Study of Youth Voter Participation and Mobilization. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.

Nisbett G. S. & DeWalt, C. C. (2016). Exploring the Influence of Celebrities in Politics: A Focus Group Study of Young Voters. Atlantic Journal of Communication, Vol. 24 (3), p. 144-156.

Noor, P. (2020). Surge in Youth Voter Turnout May Have Helped Propel Biden to Victory. the Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2021, from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/09/youth-turnout-us-election-biden-victory-young-voters

Schwartz, D. (2020). Pretty Much Every Celebrity Encouraged People to Vote This Year. Did It Work?. Vice.com. Retrieved 25 November 2021, from https://www.vice.com/en/article/k7a8aa/pretty-much-every-celebrity-encouraged-people-to-vote-this-year-did-it-work.

[image 1: Michelle Obama] - https://www.instagram.com/p/CGp-5CCg_J_/?utm_medium=share_sheet

[image 2: Selena Gomez] - https://www.instagram.com/p/CGp_hsjAMUU/?utm_medium=share_sheet

[image 3: Jennifer Aniston] - https://www.instagram.com/jenniferaniston/p/CGskEr_jE5d/?utm_medium=share_sheet

[image 4: Taylor Swift] - https://www.instagram.com/p/CGDjbq-jhtK/

[image 5: Kylie Jenner] - https://www.instagram.com/kyliejenner/p/CFscgtXnf6F/?utm_medium=share_sheet

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Tik Tok & Activism: How Gen Z Are Shaping Politics

Over the past decade, the interest in young people’s political engagement has steadily increased. The assumptions that young people were politically apathetic and disengaged have been questioned by a re-evaluation of how political engagement itself is defined and of what new forms of participation young people are practicing (Vromer, Xenos & Loader, 2015). According to Loader, Vromer and Xenos (2014), young citizens’ political identity and attitudes are being shaped less and less by their social connections to family members, school, or work environments, and more and more by their interactions through social networking platforms. Moreover, research has shown that young people are more likely to use social media for social purposes such as posting about social movements or sharing their opinions on various political matters when compared to older citizens (Raine et al., 2012).

TikTok is known across the web as a platform full of funny videos, viral challenges, and dance routines. However, a new wave of users is exploiting it as an opportunity for political action, sharing their political views, promoting their favourite candidates, and commenting on political news. Rue (2018) defined Gen Z as civically and politically engaged, as well as highly motivated to seek change and share their opinions on sustainability, diversity, and social responsibility. Thus, it is not surprising that the dance videos on Tik Tok have started to get diluted with videos about the Black Lives Matter movement, racism, Pride, and the 2020 presidential elections.

On October 27th, 2020, BBC World Service posted a video which featured several interviews with young TikTok users who were all politically engaged and with a passion for activism and change as well as a common desire to inform their peers on pressing issues in our modern-day society, even though some were not even old enough to vote.

Among such “tiktokkers”, was 17-year-old Maya Nepos, who went viral for sharing a video explaining how to sign up for Trump’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma using fake information and mobilising her 190,000 followers to do the same. This led to Donald Trump’s high expectations for his comeback rally being a huge let down when only 6,200 supporters attended out of the hundreds of thousands of tickets that had been requested online. With a simple video, Maya boycotted Donald Trump and showcased the potential impact a social media app can have on voting and elections.

The interaction between the new generations and the institutions of democratic governance within society is ‘an essential means by which a political system retains its legitimacy’ (Loader, Vromen & Xenos, 2014: p. 148). Younger citizens are the new generation leaders, thus, without their commitment and transparency towards political and social matters, the authority of politicians to represent the values and interests of younger people in the future is called into question.

Loader, Vromer and Xenos (2014) believe the overall nature of networked young citizens, who are constantly being shaped by the rising forces of globalisation, digitalisation, and a sense of reflexive individualism, will lead them to play a vital role in reshaping and reconfiguring current democratic practices. Therefore, evaluating the attitudes and political values of younger citizens is essential for predicting future social and political change.

References:

BBC World Service (2020, October 27). US Election: How TikTok is helping to shape America's presidential election [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqRTsgkTl2k

Bennett, W. L., & Segerberg, A. (2012). The Logic of Connective Action. Information, Communication & Society, 15(5), 739–768. doi:10.1080/1369118X.2012.670661

Caralle, K. (2020). Trump's supporters WILL be given masks for his comeback rally in Tulsa. Mail Online. Retrieved 27 November 2021, from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8422085/Tulsas-public-health-chief-tells-Trump-cancel-planned-comeback-rally-city.html.

Loader, B. D., Vromen, A., & Xenos, M. A. (2014). The networked young citizen: social media, political participation and civic engagement. Information, Communication & Society, Vol. 17 (2), p. 143–150. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2013.871571

Rainie, L., Smith, A., Schlozman, K. L., and Brady, H. (2012). Social Media and Political Engagement. Washington, DC: Pew Report.

Rue, P. (2018). Make Way, Millennials, Here Comes Gen Z. About Campus, Vol. 23(3), p. 5–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086482218804251

Vromen, A., Xenos, M. A., & Loader, B. (2015). Young people, Social Media and Connective Action: From Organisational Maintenance to Everyday Political Talk. Journal of Youth Studies, Vol. 18 (1), p. 80–100. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2014.933198

Westerman D., Spence, P. R., & Van Der Heide, B. (2014). Social Media as Information Source: Recency of Updates and Credibility of Information. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 19 (2), p. 171–183. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12041

[image 1] - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8422085/Tulsas-public-health-chief-tells-Trump-cancel-planned-comeback-rally-city.html.