Young Voters and Social Media

Young Voters and Social Media

The hypotheses to be tested were as follows:

The majority of youth absorb political information form personal communication and social media networks.

Access to voting information is generally provided in the form of cable television stations such as MTV and other, similar media outlets, via which popular rock stars, rappers, actors, and reality television stars provide messages regarding politicians, policy, and voting.

Surveys were used to test these hypotheses, with participants chosen from colleges and universities throughout the city.

When analyzing the data obtained, several findings are relevant. Of the respondents, the majority expressed some level if interest in politics. Most of the survey participants (60%) are registered to vote, for example. This indicates political engagement at a very basic level. This was expected, due to the foreseen influence of the media mentioned above. Interestingly, the majority of respondents also rely on traditional forms of political information, such as news tv and ballots. These media are used along with newer, more popular sources of political information, such as the Internet and popular or entertainment television. Indeed, general television and the Internet enjoyed a vast majority of preference when it comes to preferred media through which political information is gained.

Another expected result was that the majority of the respondents actively seek out political information throughout the year, as opposed to just during election times.

These findings support the second hypothesis, that access to voting information is generally provided in the form of cable television stations such as MTV and other, similar media outlets, via which popular rock stars, rappers, actors, and reality television stars provide messages regarding politicians, policy, and voting. This information is generally provided only around the time of election, which leads those who are interested to seek other means of information, such as the Internet, for the rest of the year.

The first hypothesis, that the majority of youth absorb political information form personal communication and social media networks, is only partially proven. It was surprising that the majority of respondents do not use social media such as Facebook and Twitter to access political information. This runs contrary to many studies on the subject, which were indeed used in the construction of this hypothesis.

Another surprising finding in this regard, but perhaps to be expected in the light of the first, is that the majority of respondents would be unlikely to express their political activism or engagement through social media. If personal communication would therefore be used to express themselves within the political arena, this would be in "real time," in face-to-face conversation with family and friends.