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Online communities and the political use of social media: 2019 Spanish general election

Abstract:

This article analyzes the political uses of social media in Spain and the functions of digital communities that are generated through them. The 2018 European Social Survey for Spain, the General Elections Post-Election Study of November 2019 and the CIS Post-Election Barometer of the same election are used. In addition, almost half a million tweets are analyzed in response to the messages emitted on Twitter by the main candidates in the April elections. As a result, there is a polarized use of social networks to inform and participate. Also, the existence of two groups within the digital communities that carry out the orientation or discussion process. Likewise, as the date of the elections approaches, the dynamics of competition are not constructed based on the left-right logic, but on a government-opposition key.