1

A PROJECT REPORT ON
INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEADIA ON
VOTING BEHAVIOR
The Project Report submitted to
Berhampur University, Odisha
FOR PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE AWARD OF

M.A in Political science

By

Suman Padhy

ROLL NO- PS4120 REGD NO- 9379/2014

Under the Guidance of

Dr. SHARADA PRASANNA ROUT,

Assistant Professor, P.G. Dept. Of political science

Berhampur University, Bhanja Bihar, Odisha

P.G. DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

BERHAMPUR UNIVERSITY, BHANJA BIHAR, ODISHA 2019- 2021

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Certificate

Certified that the project report entitled, “Influence of social media on voting behavior”
submitted by (sumanpadhy, Roll no- ps4120), a student of 4th semester is an original piece of
research work undertaken by her. The project report submitted to Berhampur University, Odisha
for the partial fulfilment for the award of the Post Graduate degree in Political Science. The
project report as a whole or part has not been submitted earlier for the award of any degree or
diploma nor published anywhere.

Place: Bhanja Bihar Dr.Sharada Prasanna Rout

DATE:
Assistant professor / Lecture in P.G.
Dept of Political science

Declaration

I do hereby declare that the project work titled, “INFLUNCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON
VOTING BEHAVIOR” is submitted by me to Berhampur University, Odisha for the partial
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fulfilment for the award of the Post Graduate degree in Political Science. It is a record of original
and independent research works done by me and has never been submitted to any other
university nor any institution for the award of any degree or diploma or published anywhere.

Suman Padhy

Date-

Place- Berhampur University

Acknowledgements

At the outset I am thankful to the Department of Political Science,

Berhampur University for allowing me to pursue my project work. I am thankful to
all teachers of P.G. Department of Political Science, Berhampur University who
have extended their kind cooperation and necessary help. Their timely advice and
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support has been valuable both for academic and personal level, for which I am
extremely grateful.
My special thanks go to Dr. SharadaPrasanna Rout, P.G. Department of
Political Science, Berhampur University, for his kind support, guidance and
cooperation for completing this project. I am also thankful to my teachers of my
department Dasarathi Bhuiyanand Dr Rajesh Seth who have extended their moral
support and cooperation with an atmosphere of intellectual stimulation during my
research work. I am immensely grateful to the authorities and librarian of R.P.
Padhy library, Berhampur University for their help during collection my research
materials.

Sumanpadhy

Content

Introduction.................................................................................................................................................7
(1.ii). SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY-............................................................................................14
(1.iii) AIMS AND OBJECTIVE.............................................................................................................14
(1.iv). LITERATURE REVIEW:...........................................................................................................15
1.ii.Social media uses in India...................................................................................................................20
1.ii WHAT IS VOTING BEHAVIOR-:.................................................................................................21
1.iii. SOCIAL MEDIA AND INDIAN POLITICS-...............................................................................23
1.iv. Social media vs traditional media-:...............................................................................................25
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1.v. Social Media and its Classification:-..................................................................................................27

1.vi... Impact of Social networking Site on Indian youth -:.......................................................................32
2.vii... Importance of Social Media in Indian Politics-:............................................................................32
A. Consistently ask (and answer) questions-:.................................................................................35
Engage the public via live video-:.......................................................................................................35
Don’t count out younger special platform-:.......................................................................................35
1.viii.ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN VOTING-:....................................................................................36
1.vii .2014 to 2019-. An overview.............................................................................................................38
2.i .Positive impact of social media-..........................................................................................................44
2.ii.Negative impact of social networking.................................................................................................46
Conclusion:...............................................................................................................................................49

Preface
Digital media is changing the way Political parties interact with voters bridging
the Gap like never before. Given today’s era of increasing social media usage, and
growing internet penetration due to increased usage of smartphoneson the one
hand and saturation of traditional mediums on the other digital media offers the
perfect platform for Political parties to reach audience worldwide. The use of
digital and social media increases the reach of communication efforts and allows
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targeting the advocacy and tailoring it as per the audiences marketers/

campaigners are trying to reach.

The 2008 presidentialcampaign of Barak Obamaproved the benefit of usingsocial

media for politicalcampaigns. In India the 16 th Lok Sabha election which
areunderway are different from allthe previous edition in thehistory of independent
India. social media has change theway political communicatewith each other.
social mediain now days More influencingthe young voters, which arevery much
important to getting a right representative ofpeople. Through internet,Facebook,
Twitter, YouTube had transformed the way inwhich voters access andreceive
political information.

The purpose of this paper is to key into the role social media played in election.
The paper highlights the scenario of social media in India.The study exhibits the
comparison of modern social media use with the traditional media. The paper in
the end talks about ways how social media have changed Indian Politics.

Introduction

In the past few years social media have shown a rapid growth of user count and
have been an object of scientific analysis. For example more then 800 million
people in world had a members of the Facebook network.The 2008 presidential
campaign of Barak Obama proved the benefit of using social media for political
campaigns. Nearly every aspect of that campaign used social media to advance it’s
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message to supporters including advertising, advance work, organizing in all so

states and fundraising.

Today social media has made the world a “global village”with the quick
transfer of information overriding the challenges of time and distance. social
media's has gradually become one of the important means of influencing the
society and this influence is based exclusively on it social aspect of interaction and
participating. As social media gains Moro popularity and scope, it’s impact on
voters political and cultural perception cannot be underestimated as social media
particularly influences the way users interact, communication and make decisions
on social, cultural, and, political issues in today’s world.

Voting behavior is a form of political behavior exhibited by electorates

which can be influenced by a lot of factors, from emotional, ethnicity , religion
leading them to make certain decisions. Various factors such as gender,race,
cultureor religion go a long way in affecting the way a voter behaves and the
decision he makes as regards selection of a candidate of his choice. However , key
external factors may also influence a voter’s behavior such as political
socialization, socio-cultural views, tolerance of diverse political views and the HI
media, internet inclusive. The effect of these influences on voting behavior is
dependent on attitude, believe, knowledge and the source of available information
to the voters.

Social media now days a very important and useful aspect on political
campaign. To campaign and mobilize not only youth but all class of internet user
to vote for them. Citizen’s learn about politics and government primarily from
television and news paper. The news agencies are creating different type of opinion
poll in different political situation. The social media has become a powerful
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medium which may affect voting behavior because of its potential to provide direct
and cheap access to the current information at any part of the world. Not only do
social media provide information about political affiliation, candidate and their
party manifestos and it also provides a platform through which voters across
cultural divides can relate and interact with themselves on issues about these
candidate.

Nearly every political party in the country used social media to campaign and
advance it’s plan, message and manifestos to supporters including advertising,
mobilization and organizing in all the States of the federation, and even
fundraising. Facebook, YouTube and especially Twitter were used to let voters
know how each party or particular candidate felt about important national issues
ranging from security to power. Hence social media became powerful enough to
influence voter decisions and choices as many voters who had fixed their mind and
conscience on voting a particular party or candidate began to change their minds
based on certain information or idea they got online about the party or candidate.
Information gotten by particular voter was always dynamic, as the same voter
would use several internet tools and button to broadcast same message to other
voters like him through medium such as blogs, Facebook, chat rooms etc., in order
to influence them.

1.1 BACKGROUND OF SOCIAL MEDIA USES IN

POLITICS-
By the end of the 1980s and start of 1990s as a commercial internet service
providers (ISP) started to emerge, a new era in communication started. In
1990s internet penetration increased significantly, especially in the western
world. By 2001, a third of developed world had internet penetration.
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During the past decade, social media have become powerful Political tools in
campaigns. The American media system has undergone significant transformations
since the Advent of new media in the late 1980s. The Political media system in the
United States has massive change over the past three decade. The scope of these
new media developments is vast, encompassing both legacy communication
platforms made possible by emerging technologies. The new media era began with
the infotainment trend in the 1980s when television talk shows, talk radio, and
tabloid paper talk on enhanced Political roles, changes became more radical when
the internet emerged as a delivery system for political content in the 1990s. Digital
technology first supported platforms where users could access static documents
and brochures, but soon hosted sited with interactive features. The public gained
greater political agency through technological affordances thatallowed them to
react to Political events and issues, communicate directly to candidates and
Political leaders, contribute original news, images, videos and Political content and
encourage in Political activities, such as working on behalf of candidates , raising
funds and organizing protest. At the same time , journalists acquired pioneering
mechanisms for reporting stories and reaching audiences .

The evolution of social media like Facebook, twitter and YouTubefrom platforms
facilitating networks among friendsto powerful Political tools has been an
especially momentous development. The Political role of social media in American
politics was established during the 2008 presidential election. Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama's social media strategy revolutionized
campaigning by altering the structure of Political organizing. The campaign
exploited the networking, collaborating, and community building potential of
social media. In this unique election, the calculated strategies were aided by the
spontaneous innovation of voters themselves.
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Still, there are indications that elite political actors have increasingly
attempted to shape, even restrict, the public digital influence in the Political sphere.
Since 2008 parties and campaign organizations have sought to hyper manage
voter’s digital engagement in elections by channeling their involvement through
official web sites and social media platforms. They have controlled voters access
to information by microtargeting messages based on users personal data and
consumer preferences derived from their social media accounts.

So what is new in social media? What does it have that traditional media
does not have? The three unique features of social media are-

 Interactivity
In the mass media the communication is one sided. The broadcasters reach a
large audience but the audience can hardly show reaction. Now for example,
a blogger can receive instant feedback from her audience by comments and
reply back to comments which could be very hard to do through mass media.
 Immediacy Transparency
Through social media someone can contact the audience without any
mediator. In mass media, there are broadcasters which have significant
effect on the media produced while serving it. However on social media the
media is solely produced by the producer and directlyaccessed by the
audience, such as creating a video , post and broadcasting on YouTube or a
blog page on Facebook and Twitter.
 Accessibility and Participation-

While the consumption of mass media is very easy, production of mass

media is very hard and can be said that open for only a privileged minority.
However on social media the production and broadcasting of Media is almost as
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easy as consumption. Every individual can write a blog or share photos without a
lot of effort.

SOCIAL MEDIA-A ROAD WAY TO TOUCH THE YOUTH

Even though politicians for their campaign still use posters, cut-outs, fliers,
graffiti and personal rally’s to reach and win over voters but with the social media
changing the picture of urban India, political parties are becoming tech savvy and
realizing that social media is the only way to reach out to the youth. A good
example is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, He was the main and first
person who uses social media power in 2014 election and rise as a great leader in
India, Indians love and blessed him through social media and his party became a
major party in 2014 elections. The B.J.P has been master of the social media and
the opposition construed that as the major reason for their election victories, using
bots, and paid follower’s in Twitter, fb and Instagram, political leaders aspire to
win the polls of the future.

For 2009 general election social media usage in India was little. Today,
however, Facebook has 294 million users and Twitter has an estimated 33 million
accounts in the country. As per the LAMAI report 2013 this change for presence of
social media could be observed as every political party participating in 2014
general election has set a 2-5% of its election budget for spending on social media.
The report says that the leading parties Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and Nation
congress party has set this it 500 crores and 400 crores, respectively.
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LET US NOW LOOK INTO SOME REASON WHY SOCIAL MEDIA IS

INCREASINGLY BECOMING IMPORTANT IN POLITICSFOR SHAPING
THE VOTING BEHAVIOR OF CITIZEN’S

1.Easy way to spread information to a large audience-

Now days every person has a social networking account. Through this people’s are
getting knowledge in their interested Field. It is a very easy way to assess to
maximum people. Social networking sites are easy way to spread information.

2. Tool for citizen engagement by promoting a two-way communication

– Many political parties use social media to invite suggestions for their election
manifesto, take feedback from the people about their current performance etc.
Thus, it ties the people with the political party by creates a sense of belongingness
and involvement.

3. Increases transparency –The work of the political party is floated on the

social media and real-time feedback from the citizens is encouraged. It also helps
the party to communicate its goals and ideologies as well as give a detailed
analysis about the amount of work that has been accomplished. It also encourages
political candidates to speak more truth rather than selling diction to the voters
during their election speeches.

4. Voice of the marginalized people – The people who were marginalized

earlier can now communicate their ideas to a big audience with considerable ease.
This will set the platform for the formation of new political alternatives and greater
options for the voters. This will also bring in more accountability to the veteran
political parties as they can be shown the door if they don’t work.
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5. Cost effective – Social media incurs low cost when compared to other
modes likes print or electronic media for the communication of information. This
opens the field for a large number of players to contest in the race who were earlier
not able to compete due to a shortage of funds.

(1.ii). SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY-

This study will help beam searchlight on the impact of social media on voters
behavior, the decisions they make and elections as a whole based on the
information available to voter’s on the internet. It will also enlighten relevant
stakeholders such as Political parties, candidates, and even the civil society on
how social media can bring about awareness and campaign opportunity if
properly utilized.

This research study will help stakeholders understand that maintaining a

good and healthy profile online with a cordial relationship between the party
and voters can positively influence voter’s behavior. Now as general election
(2019) in India are approaching fast it’s important to see how Indian Political
parties are making use of these newly identified medium of campaigning to
reach out wider audience. Also it’s important to study dark side of social media.

(1.iii) AIMS AND OBJECTIVE

The general objective of this study is to determine the effect of social media on
voters behavior in India. The specific objectives are-:

 To analyze the scenario of social media in India.

 To study why social media matter’s for Indian Political parties.
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 To study some ways indicating how social media have changed Indian
voting behavior.
 To determine whether there is any significant relationship between
dependent variable “I might be influence to vote for a particular politician
based on content I read about him on twitter or Facebook” with respect to
independent variable “I follow political candidate on twitter and Facebook”
and “I actively engage in political discussion by expressing my opinion on
Facebook and twitter”.
 To determine whether there is a significant impact of conversation on forum
on decision to vote on ‘Gender’.
 To determine whether there is any significant relationship between variable
“party which is digitally interactive on social media” and likelihood to vote
for that party.
 To determine the relationship between the dependent variable – ‘YouTube
are the important source of information to me and affect my decision to
vote’ and the independent variables –‘Gender’ and ‘Member of fan page on
any social networking site.

(1.iv). LITERATURE REVIEW:

Classical studies of voting behavior have identified useful voting patterns
which focus directly on individual voters. Authors who addressed such approaches
as sociology and economic to electoral analysis include(Lazarsfeld, P.F, Berelson
B., and Gaudet H. (1994). The People’s Choice: How the voter makes up His Mind
In a Presidential Campaign. New York: Columbia University Press). Some of the
principales that they established later became the foundation for the work of other
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authors. Berg(2017) agreed that the social media has high in voters participation
because it has made it possible to address the challenges facing traditional
democracy. Voters participation is little different from voting patterns. According
to Berg(2017) the social media is a stage which offers a new and innovative
channel for social interaction. Chen(2016) and Bosnjak .et al(2007) also explained
that, due to the social network effect, there is the possibility of increasing Political
participation due to the positive impact on online and offline Civic engagement as
a result of group incentive, and the use of information. Accordingly we investigate
how online Political participation in social media relates to voting patterns. As this
relationship seems unexplored. Conversely, there appears to be an understanding
that using social media for Political purpose and paying attention to traditional
media has a higher chance of increasing Civic participation (Bosnjak et al.2007;
Holt et al.2013). The relationship between online Political participation in social
media concerning connections with Political activists and the impact on voting
patterns appears unclear.

Clay Shirky’s and Malcolm Gladwell's argument reading the importance of

social media use in revolutions are explained. Dr.mohapatrs (2013) studies the role
of the media as an institutional wing of the modern democracy. During the
recently held Jan Lokpal Movement which was unexpected in many ways. This
article also points out that massive use of social media in lokpal movement and it
turned out to be a trend setter and can be seen as a successful experimentation for
good cause. Finally it essay out how the movement that was initiated by the social
media influenced the traditional media which ultimately resulted in other

(1.v) Research Question-

 Does social media Influence voters behavior in India like American states?
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 What is the influence of social media on voters behavior?

 What are the factors influence voter’s behavior in India?
 Does gender, educational level , income and purpose of social media use was influenced
the voting pattern?

(1.ii) HYPOTHESIS-:

Given the recent development and rapid emergence of new technologies and
different social networking platform in the 21 st century, the prevalence and
increasing normalcy of social media in our lives gives rise to many questions,
given the uncertainty surrounding social media. I drew my hypothesis to reflect
how social media has impacted in voting behaviorand how it will differs in
according to Gender, the educational level, the basis of income and purpose of
using social media.

(1.vii) RESEARCH METHODOLOGY-:

For this study, I have followed some books and data from the
different journals , reports, newspapers, Articles etc. It is purely based on
secondary literatures and various relevant data’s for this project. Data has
been collected purely through the secondary sources. The secondary data has
been collected from government reports, books, journals, websites,
newspapers, experts, neighbors, and observation etc.

(1.vii) LIMITATION OF STUDY:-

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Because the short time of period I could not able to cover all the literature of
my topic ,. However I tried explore data on my topic.

( 1.viii) chapterization:

The entire research work will run in to four chapters. The first one on
introduction brings out the importance of the study, and states it’s objectives
and hypothesis. It also includes methodology and limitations. Chapter-ii will
contain impact, classification and role. A quick look on subjective well being
will also be carried out in chapter – ii. Analysis and discussions is to be done in
chapter- III . Conclusion and suggestions for further research will be presented
in chapter iv, followed by bibliography and reference.

CHAPTER- 1

 Social media uses in India

 What is voting behavior
 Social media and Indian politics
 Social media vs traditional media
 Social media and its classification
 Impact of social networking sites on Indian youth.
 Importance of social media in Indian politics
 Role of social media in voting
 2014 to 2019- overview
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1.ii.Social media uses in India

Growing digitalization effort combined with low data prices enabled a significant
number of people to use the internet activity across India. Of these, about 448
million were active social media users. YouTube and Facebook accounted for the
largest penitration, at nearly 89 percent and 76 percent respectively as of the
January 2021. With the deep penitration of internet connectivity among people
the number of social media userin India have been growing constantly. The Indian
government sponsored Digital India initiative has also contributed greatly to this
growth, the year 2020 , which came under the grip of the covid- 19 pandamic, saw
much resort to social media to gather information or to express themselves and
several new topic and conversations began trending on social media in India.The
number of internet user had increased over the years in rural as well as urban areas.
Social media is a big platform to spreading information. How people associate with
each other and the mode in which information is pooled and disseminated has
changed due to the Advent of social media.Traditional media such as print , radio
and television are different from the social media in two significant ways-

 The amount of content that can be generated by news/ opinion Makers is

much lower than the content generated by users themselves.
1. It’s 'viral' ability for the probable multiplying spread of information by
word of mouth and interspersing of the numerous social media platforms,
dipping the control over the spread of such of information. These features
symbolizesthe paradigm move from web 1.0 technologies that sanctioned
simple information sharing through basic two- transactions to web 2.0
where everyone is/can be a consumer as well as the creator of content.
Social media is redefining how people connect, communicate and influence
one another.
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1.ii WHAT IS VOTING BEHAVIOR-:

Samuel s.Eldersveld in his article theory on method in Voting behavior.
Researcher write the term “ voting behavior is not new , but it has been
used of late to describe certain areas of study and types of Political
phenomena which previously had either not been conceived or were
considered irrelevant” . Voting behavior is not confined to the
examination of voting statistics, records and computation of electoral
shifts and swings. It also involves an analysis of individual psychological
process that is perception, emotions and motivation and their relation to
Political action as well as of institutional patterns, such as the
communication process and their impact on election. The term voting
behavior has recently been expended in meaning and is taken as one
major and broad area of study subsumed within the broader designation
of Political behavior. It involves a study of human Political behavior in
the context of voting in elections. Voting behavior studies.

Voting behavior constitute an important area of Political science in which

theory can be systematically and qualitatively measured and tested. Election
refer to a process of democratic participation in which all the people express
their opinion about personalities and issued by making on a ballot paper.
Election express democratic class struggle through voting. Major
differences in the Political allegiances of different age group, classes,
education, reported by voting survey. This study has very close to the
discipline of sociology. Man is a rational creature in the philosophical Sense
of term ; he is not so rational in the realms of the economic and Political
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behavior. An empirical study of the electoral behavior displays the fact that
the behavior of man is influenced by several irrational forces. The role of
Political parties and pressure groups in invoking religious communal
factors, influence of money or charismatics personality of a leader and a
host of other irrational forces have their definite influence on the voters
mind. This fact applies to every democratic system and as such, India is no
exception.

 What factors are influencing voting patterns-

To make inference and predictions about behavior concerning a voting

decision, certain factors such as gender, race, culture or religion must be
considered. Now days the educational level, income of the voter, for what
purpose the citizen are used social media is also important factors. The
effect of these influences on voting behavior is best understood through
theories on the formation of attitudes, believe, knowledge structures and
the practice of information processing. For example, surveys from
different countries indicate that people are generally happier in
individualistic cultures where they have rights such as the right to vote.
Additionally, social influence and peer effects, as originating from family
and friends, also play on important role in elections and voting behavior

1.iii. SOCIAL MEDIA AND INDIAN POLITICS-

The emergence of social media gives voice to voiceless and fractured
common people which is negligible in the orthodox and typecast media.
Major growth of social media is due to the youth as they dedicate most of
their time to social media, and everyone including Political parties is very
well aware of the fact and try to influence the young generation. In the 2019
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election, our country had 130 million first time voters, out of which more
than 15 million votes between 18 to 19 years of age. The Political parties
with the help of social media we able to get information regarding voters
likes and dislikes; and further manipulate them, especially the swing voters.
Whose views can be changed by manipulating information. The Political
parties and politicians started using social media for communication and
campaning purpose to influence voters, which in turn saved their time ,
money and resources giving them a larger audience for interaction. Political
campaigns are not just confined to buttons and banners for politicians to
reach their voters. The new Political showground is full of infomercial ,
advertisements, blogs, posts, and lakhs of tweets, Instagram posts, Facebook
post etc. Politicians are now able

to be continuously demonstrate their message through endless commercials

and gauge . Their communication by viewing direct response to their action
on Facebook of twitter or Instagram. Soon the platform connecting
professionals will also b used by the parties to propagate themselves. Social
media creates an innovative Political conversation. Power of Political
massaging is taken. Away from the mass media model and firmly placed in
to the peer- to- peer public dialogue. The instruction of social media has
allowed unparalled empowerment and arrengement of the ‘aamadmi' for
expressing Political opinions. The positive development has been that the
youth is speaking about Political issues. Formerly the Political discussions
were constrained only to those who read newspapers, viewed news channels
or contributed in discussions at village or clubs. But now social media
interaction has made the youth of India to discuss Political issues. They
employ time to analyze and discuss politics. They now have their views on
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the happenings of Political events and also influence the administrative

decision making. Social media evolution in the Indian Political space is
factual, perceptible and fast- tracking. Through it may not bring in massive
changeinstantaneously , still it plays a vital role in spreading Political
awareness in a developing country like India.

Apart from the positive impact of social media in Indian Politics especially
in the last decade, one can also see a strong negative impact in usage not
only from the people with in the country but also outside the country. In the
21st century, the 1stelection in the world where social media tools were used
to interferein the election process by outsiders and discussed globally was
the 2016 American presidential election, which also shook America’s
Political landscape. Fake social media accounts were created and used as
United States citizens to influence the election by various posts and image.
Even, Facebook admits that Russian groups company bought $100,000
worth of ads, to spread disinformation and propaganda in society, where
social and Political divide exists and these advertisements saw by 10 million
American people. In this situation, it will be very keenly observed by the
experts how much influence do the social media platforms have on voter’s
opinions, ideas and analysis in the future Indian election.

1.iv. Social media vs traditional media-:

Traditional media refers to everything that runs via traditional media channels.
It includes contemporary modes of communication such as television, radio,
newspapers, magazine etc. In traditional media the sender usually decides what
to publish, broadcast or telecast, while the receiver always receives the
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information. Social media on the other hand, includes websites and

applications that are available for social networking. It is a form of electronic
communication that enables users to create and share information, ideas,
messages and content via social networking websites and applications.

In the way of communication traditional media delivers a single message

through one way communication to as many people possible to reach over
blanket networks like television and radio. This means only the sender or the
source of the information decides what to publish, telecast or broadcast, while
the receiver always receives the information. On the contrary, communication is
two- way in social media; in fact two- way conversation is the heart of social
media. Social media gives a lot of freedom over creation of information and
information sharing.

On the way of engagement with audience- social media is all about

engagement whereas traditional media is about reach. Social media requires
actual interaction and response. For that, you need to create eye- catching
compelling content which is unavoidably engaging. Social media is a great
platform to engage with your audience. Traditional media, on the contrary, is a
one- way street.

Some point has highlighted the difference between them-

1.where traditional media generally offers a wider audience pool,

socialmedia allows for more targeted distribution

1. Social media is immediate, while traditional can be delayed due to press

times.
2. Traditional media pieces are more final , where social media is dynamic.
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3. Social media offers more control over the message than traditional
media.
4. Social media is a two-way conversation, and traditional is one way.

Can social media replace the traditional media?

The answer to this question is ; No.

And here's why :- Both social and traditional media play prominent and very
important roles in today’s public relations However, their role are quite
different. Social media is often hailed for it’s flexibility, immediacy, and the
ability to gatherfeedback. Traditional media, on the other hand offers a higher
chance of reaching a larger audience, especially as it’s disseminated widely via
social channels has includes contemporary modes of communication. It simply
means broadcasting your message to as many people as you can.
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This picture has highlighted the timing of both traditional media and social media. Through social media
information’s has spread fast to audience.

1.v. Social Media and its Classification:-

 26

One of the modern communication sites and social mingling through the
virtual medium of the internet is social media. Typical social media network
service could be content sharing, web communities, and internet forums. In
Political point of view it has reduce the distance between the citizens and
government. It is anther medium of political communication.

At least five major features are easy to identify:

1].Social networking and social interaction

2]. Participation

3]. The use of different providers (e.g. search engines, blogspaces, etc.

4]. Openness

5]. Collaboration (between both users and user groups)

Most of us know social media from its different tools and communities.
Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Flicker and Wikipedia are the most famous. The
tools of social media – we can also call them “Web 2.0” tools – developed quickly,
and new tools, functions, and services are born every day.

Classification-

1. Facebook (2.74 billion users)

2. YouTube (2.29 billion users)
3. WhatsApp (2 billion users)
4. Instagram (1.22 billion users)
5. Twitter
 27

Those are the world’s largest social media networks the most popular
social media site is Facebook.

Facebook- why it’s matters-

Facebook is used by different age group in India. Mostly in between 18-65.
Meaning political parties can reach an estimated 36% of voting age population on
the platform. And the user base is growing: the number of Facebook users in India
has 2.6 billion monthly active users for March 2020. This is an 11 present increase
in Facebook MAUs year – over -year. Facebook is a user friendly social
networking sites. That’s why Facebook has more frequently used by politicians.

The numbers highlight the importance of Facebook as India gears up for what
some consider will be an election that is fought as much on the dusty streets of
Bharat as on the social media platform. And it comes as the social networking
platform confronts a global crisis as lawmakers and regulators across the world call
for greater scrutiny to check potential abuse and misuse of it to sway election
outcome.

YouTube- medium of Political communication

Researchers have increasingly recognized the importance of YouTube as a
bidirectional medium of Political advertising and communication. You tube
provides free service for users to find videos as well as to share their own videos.
It become such a popular medium that it led enhanced coverage of the candidates
at almost no cost , provision of podium for less acknowledged candidates,
increasing the registration of voters, raising of funds and recruitment of volunteers.
 28

WhatsApp- widespread use of Political campaign

The past few years have seen WhatsApp become an increasingly powerful and
influential tool for political campaigns. The political campaigners disseminate
photos, messages and calls to action via WhatsApp groups both large and small. In
2019 WhatsApp introduced end- to- encryption, meaning that users can
communicate without their messages being readable or intercepted by others. It
allows creation of groups of up to 256 people, generating large communities of
close contact. Through this feature Political information has reached in large scale
with in a minute.

Instagram- anther way to communicate people

Instagram, the social media can be said to be as popular culture has been
constructing a full political life debate is limited and hidden, and full manipulation
of the media, enter the new chapter and follow the flow of the entertainment
industry by creating a system of celebrities in politics. The method is conventional
Political campaign recently started deemed less effective and empty. Political
messages has how moved to the virtual spaces has the massive and open.
Currently, the online media one Instagram makes everyone has the effect of each
of the others. This can happen because of what he wrote or the distribution through
online media. Then it is considered as the advantages of online media which means
the exchange of information and ideas that are deemed effective and fast .

Twitter- most used platform by Political leaders

Facebook and Twitter are used to share opinion. Between these two platforms,
twitter used are more likely to share opinions on Political matters. Twitter’s cap on
 29

text volume, 280 characters, makes 8t manageable to engage with the data through
text analysis.

In India, the use of social media platforms by politicians to share their

opinions is fairly recent, starting from 2014; in U.S which heavily used in 2008
election. Across the NDA led national government, twitter is the most used social
media platform by almost all the national ministers and ministries.

The latest statistics show that Facebook continue to reign strong as the king of
social media with 2.80 billion active users as of January 2021. After that the
YouTube, WhatsApp , Instagram and others..
 30

1.vi... Impact of Social networking Site on Indian youth -:

In modern Life, social media is developing fast . It is used by many people

Social networking phenomenon has emerged over the past ten years. that
time, social networking sites (SNS) have grown from a to a mass online activity, in
which tens of millions of internet users are engaged, both in their leisure time, and
at work. However, there has been very little research on the socio-economic impact
of these sites in the Indian context. The impact of these social networking sites on
the youth of India is both positive as well as negative phase. Social networking is a
phenomenon which has existed since society began. Human beings have always
sought to live in social environments. The proliferation of social networking sites
(SNS) and their pervasion in everyday practices is affecting how modern Indian
youth societies manage their social networks. To a significant extent, SNS have
shifted social networking to the Internet. In less than five years, these sites have
grown from a niche online activity into a phenomenon through which tens of
millions of internet users are connected, both in their leisure time, and at work.
There are various factors which have prompted us to consider the implications of
these technologies for policy-making. One of these is the willingness of users to
embrace SNS as a means of communication and social networking in everyday
life.

2.vii... Importance of Social Media in Indian Politics-:

For politician, the coming lok Sabha election is not about getting elected; it
is about getting socially elected. Social media has changed the way people think,
write and react but political pundits believe it has also influence the way people
vote. Most of the political parties are aware of the pulse and the impulse of the
 31

public on social media timelines, which is why more and more politician are
realizing the importance of social media as an electoral tool. As a result, for the
general election, digital strategies have become central to planning political rallies
and party manifesto are no longer conspiracies of a coterie but are laid bare in the
public eye, if not crowd-source to voters at large. Canvassing demand a party’s
interactive presence on social platform like twitter, Facebook, You tube, Google
plus. And so for anyone wanting to read thesentiment of the people, the notion of
the dipstick survey has been replace by a tweet-stick survey.

But does social media really bridge the divide between candidates and
voters? Does digital democracy have the power to change political fortunes? What
makes for a winning political strategy and just how is social media at the helm of a
social churn in our country? So the analysis and interpretation of the above
question will be carried out by this research ,by analyzingsome data. Which is
collected through Google.

The relationship between social media and politics is rooted in the desire for
change. Today the public at large is using the online information and networking
access to find solution. Civil society with its rising frustration over political apathy,
is trying to use social media for a change. This online revolution may be less about
technology and more about changing human behavior.

But at the same time the quest for transparency and free flow of information
is raising question about over democratization, what’s reality and what’s humor,
and fake following. This credibility crisis makes us wonder if leader are really
what they project themselves to be.

But the usage limit of social media is restricted to urban areas only. People
belonging to rural areas are still very far from usage of social media. Because
 32

technology had not penetrated into rural parts. So politician may not be able to
connect or reach rural people by social media. Majority of voters belong to rural
areas, and it is not possible to reach them by social media so it is a challenge for
political party to reach up to them in minimum time as well as cost. So here again
traditional media plays a significant role in influencing them.

Social media connects people and gets them talking and sharing is one thing.
But it become more meaningful when it allow campaigner to know the voters,
target a specific audience, splice demographics, mobiles support, and urge people
to participate. When some of these people actively engage in political debates, they
become a great tool in spreading the word and influencing opinion. More and
younger Indians are getting on the social media bandwagon, and this will increase
with time, According to Internet and Mobile Association of India(IAMAI) and
IMRB International, the number of Internet users in India had reached 205 million
in October this year. And by June 2014, India will have 243 million internet users,
at which point of time, it is expected to overtake the U.S as the second largest
Internet base in the world. And there were 687.6 million internet user in India in
January 2020. In the number of Internet user in India increased by 128 million
between 2019 and 2020.

These social networking sites are acting as great medium for view
mobilization. People are feeling free in sharing their thoughts on any issue and
even youth is raising their voice against social acts like violation of Human Rights,
corruption etc. These social networking sites are proving themselves a boon at least
in bringing thoughts of people on these social issues paper. The gradual switch
from traditional media to social media is something that must be taken into account
by all political campaigns because if taken advantage of, social media opens up the
 33

possibility for politicians to structure their campaign to address constituents with

different beliefs on a more personal base.

Hear I have mentioned some ticks how Political party create a road between
public and the Political leader . This was some method through this citizens
are able to know information about their concerns Political party.

A. Consistently ask (and answer) questions-:

Asking questions is a proven way to boost engagement on social media.

As highlighted by tip #1, Q&As are the bread and butter of political accounts.
Posing topical questions to your follower is a simple way to encourage a bit of
back-and-forth. Likewise, it’s a way to show that you’re willing to listen to your
constituents.

Engage the public via live video-:

Live video has taken over Political some media. Serving as a sort of
alternative to traditional newscasts. Social media video empowers politicians
to break their own news and have conversations with constituents in real
time.

For example many politicians have taken to regular live streaming on

Facebook and Instagram as a way to interact with voters and non voters
alike. Rather than just talk at voters , live videoencourages both meaningful
and personable conversation.
 34

Don’t count out younger special platform-:

Twitter and Facebook are the go-to platforms for Political account and based on
social media demographics and how age groups traditionally vote, this makes
perfect sense.

Meanwhile the 2020 democratic primary saw its first taste of candidates
taking to tiktok.

1.viii.ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN VOTING-:

Current social media users are pegged at 85 million and are slated to hit 91
millions by December 2013.in 2014 election B.J.P's Narendra Modi and
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi are the two most searched politicians.
Followed by that numbers in 2019 Lok Sabha election. It believe that social
media plays a very pervasive role throughout the election process. Few
examples of successful social media campaigns by Political parties in times of
elections are-:

Aamadmi’ party in 2013 and 2020 assembly election. Bharatiya Janata party
And Indian National Congress in 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha
election.Bjp'sNarendra modi, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi are the
most searched politicians in 2014 election, in 2019 election including them
Amit Saha was the top most searched politician.

 The role of social media for upcoming election can be broken down in to
following:

 Ask, share and decide

 35

New and existing voters go online to seek information, address queries and,
most importantly, to form opinions. The same is widely influenced by the
social media chatter, information provided by political parties, the ability to
participate in a dialogue with the voters, and the overall sentiment prevalent
around the leaders up for voting. The conversations also become an enabler
for the undecided voter population.

 Source of news feeds for traditional media

Social media influences other media (TV/ Newspapers pick up a lot of news
from Twitter these days!).Traditional media channels such as television/print
leverage social media conversations and discussions to share real time news
and views around political parties.

 Word of mouth transported to physical world

Word of mouth is carried offline, wherein those who are passively

consuming or are engaging with the chatter carry the opinion offline to
peers, family and colleagues, thus making it a huge source of influence even
in the physical world.

 Everyone is a journalist on social media

 It enables every person to be a reporter-journalist and educationalist

on Facebook, Twitter, etc. and share information /news of national
interest.

There is a small but very active Twitter base in India that is highly political
and there are constant fights between the right-wingers and the rest, which
 36

can be read as BJP-Congress fights. Major political episodes in the country

become trending topics and both sides are able to make TV news headlines
quite regularly.

 Opportunity to influence female audiences

Last but not the least, with the increase in female internet penetration, it
becomes an active source of influence and education for the female voters
which constitute close to 49% of potential voters, which is not a percentage
to be ignored. There are increasing expectations that more campaign staffers
actively use Twitter and Facebook to promote the campaign and engage
voters. Possessing a more social DNA is now becoming critical for political
parties.

Political parties have earmarked 2-5% of the election budgets for social
media. However, there are certain pros and cons to campaigning on social
media

1.vii .2014 to 2019-. An overview

The idea of social media as a force multiplier in politics has gained

vitality in our mind , especially after the us presidential election. From the
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro's WhatsApp campaigns to influence voter’s
to the Philippines president Rodrigo Duter's use of Facebook and troll armies to
broadcast and amplify his support, social media has been used by political
parties both as a tool of empowerment and oppression. In India, the world's
 37

most populous democracy and the second largest online market, political
parties, through a suit of apps, websites, blogs, social networking sites, and
social messaging service have gone up a notch and made social media Political
communications a part of the people’s daily lives.

Complicating matters is the fact that the Indian general election happens to
be the world's largest voting event with an estimated 900 million Indians
expected to vote for 543 parliamentarians from 930,000 poling booths in 2019.
Here comes the communications cachet of social media. Aided by affordable
4G internet connection and smartphones, social media has been a godsend for
parties who can save on time, resources, and efforts of physical coverage of
these areas by reaching out to more voters on a personal level, in an interactive
format. Unmediated access between politicians and the people is rewriting the
rules of Political interactions and processes , creating a new software of
democracy. The party that has been ahead of curve in maximizing returns from
social media has been the center right Bharatiya Janata party.

Four year social media shift-

In the past four years, there has been a marked shift in social media content
and tactics of the BJP and the major opposition party, center left Indian
National Congress while the Bjp’s 2014 election campaign centered on
development, in 2014, when the ruling INC- led coalition government,
buffeted by scams and accusations of policy paralysis, were faring poorly on
the development front, the BJP had muted it’s Hindutva agenda and
focussed on one issues: “SABKA SAATH, SABKA VIKASH” using
technology and analytics, includingSAP, Oracle and Microsoft and social
 38

media driven public relations firms and advertising agencies, they captured
voter profiles at booth level and tailored trategies accordingly.

Brand modi

A parliamentary election was converted in to a presidential election with the

focus being on the star campaigner, NarendraDamadar Modi, thenchief
minister of Gujrat. Social media acted as game changer. Modi had been
ostracised by the traditional media for the Gujarat riots of 2002 happening
under his watch, where more than 2,000 people, most of them Muslims, had
died. He bypassed the media embargo by taking to social media in a big way
to project the image of Gujarat as the beacon of Development in India. The
BJP invested around USD 100 million on modi's campaign, with heavy
weight advertising companies like Madison world, McCaan Group, and
Ogilvy and Mather building “ brand modi” as a technocratic, development
oriented leader and some one accessible to the people. Through the
whizbangery of hi- tech 3D rallies, tea booth conference calls, live streamed
messages via the Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, and several websites and
apps, modi spoke directly to millions of voters.

Many social media users got swept themodiwave , which supplanted the
saffron wave , the traditional media, doing a volte face, started piggybacking
on the social media, which was trending Modi. Modi projected himself as an
alpha male Hindu nationalist leader covering different support bases through
a multi- pronged targeting strategy. The election witnessed the highest voter
turnout with 160 of 543 constituencies identified as highly impacted by
social media, especially Facebook.
 39

In 2019

In the 2019 election, it is expected that all constituencies are going to be impacted
given the extensive penetration of social media. Hyper- segmentation of voters
using social media analytics has made identity politics a viable social media
campaign strategy. As web 2.0 becomes more compatible with vernacular scripts,
the poor gate- keeping function governing messaging platforms like WhatsApp,
sharechat and Halo, makes it easier to spread polarising messages and
disinformation faster.Hear two things had happened firstly Modi became the face
of BJP’S positive messaging, he was reached to the citizens through social media.
Secondly , the parties religious lines , it has the negative impact on citizens.

Now the India national Congress, too cranking up the identity politics rhetoric
with a soft Hindutva strategy. Since 2017, they started showcasing his Hindu
Brahmin pedigree by posting photos in Social media of his visits to Temples,
invoking Hindu deities during campaign trails.

Digital India- how influence voters

Digital India is a campaign lunched by the government of India in order to ensure

the government’s services are made available to citizens electronically by
improved online infrastructure and by increasing internet connectivity or making
the country digitally empowered in the field of technology. The initiative includes
plans to connect rural areas with high speed internet networks. It consists of three
core components: the development of secure and stable digital infastructure,
delivering government services digitally, and universal digital literacy.

It was lunched on 1 July 2015, by India's prime minister Narendra modi, it

isboth enabler and beneficiary of other key Government of India schemes, such as
 40

BharatNet, Make in India, startup India, standup India, Bharatmala, sagarmala.

Through this scheme government has directly connected with citizens. People’s
are likely more awarded the government policies. It was created a positive
psylogical effect in citizens mind about governance. It was very much effected to
voter’s behavior .

CHAPTER--2
 41

 Positive and negative impact of social

networking sites.

 Making voters and Political parties click.

 Some recent election in India where social

media do wonders in voters mind.

 Conclusion

 Reference

The political scene has changed to considerable amount over the most recent few
decades. The web has played a vital role in this change. Social, especially, are
 42

presently a genuine factor in Political crusades and in the manner individuals

consider issues. Leaders and their supporters always post their perspective on
Facebook and Twitter. Each political party has its very own pages, from which it
communicates publicity. We should take a gender at the main ways that online life
impacts governmental issues today. Social media has left both positive and
negative effects on Politics

Adults in these countries express mixed views about the overall influence of
internet in politics. In most countries, larger shares say the internet has had a good
impact on politics than say the same about issues such as children and moralityBut
 43

Notably smaller shares say the internet has had a good impact on politics than say
this about it’s effect on issues such as education, the economy or local culture.

2.i .Positive impact of social media-

1. News any time of a day
We got every days news through social media at any time of day. In the
past days , individuals needed to sit tight for the following paper or Tv
news show to get the most recent data, online news is a day in day out
wonder. Social sites have made this a stride further. While you can get
to the news on numerous sites at any hour. The majority of people
invest more energy in destination. For example, Facebook and Twitter,
they do on genuine news or political sites . This implies that the most
recent news stories and assessment and shared by your campaigns at
whatever point you sign on. Political leaders are used the social
networking sites for their political use. They spread information ,about
new policy, about different programme. Social network sites are the
easiest way to spread news.
2. Polls impact-
As with different kinds of political news, the web has enormously expanded
the number of survey polls we see everyday. Social media has quickened
this significantly more. Not only do these websites report the poll
outcomes but you can also take part in Facebook survey’s. For example,
some news channels do a opinion poll about feature election. Many
people has like and comment for answering the question. Through this
they know what citizens are think about their representatives. Result of
polls impact elections to a great extent. This is correct regardless of
whether they are imperfect. A poll can be safe beneficial prediction. For
instance if individuals think one application is a long war ahead in the race.
They may finish up there is no reason for voting in favor of the apposition
candidate. At the point when Individuals are posting the results of the most
recent poll via social media sites through out the day.
3. Access to new female voters-
 44

For the female voters, social media offers women politicians and
candidates a platform to present themselves and their political programs
before citizens. Considering “ it’s low cost and the role that personal
initiative plays in it’s use” . Newer media like to be dramatically changing
the lives and experiences of adults.
4. Political leaders in direct connection-
One of the beneficial outcomes of web- based social networking is the
open door for voters to interact with political leaders. In the past , on the
off Chance that you needed to Meet a government officials, you had to go
to an event. Not every person can do this, with present day, it is
conceivable to go to virtual occasion where you can participate in live
programs and interact with government officials.
5. Targeting
Through social media politicians are easily targeted their audience in large
sphere. They would now be able to modify their messages, similarly as
posters on Facebook can utilize targeted promotion. In this manner, on the
off chance that you see that political messages appear to talk you by and
by.
6. Assessible to all-
7. It is changing how people interact with one another, gather information
and changing how governments share information and deliver services.
Social media platforms such as Facebook, twitter, and YouTube are not
accessible on their own and may never be. It is easily accessible to all
groups of people.
8. Transparent, fast and quick-
Social media is in public processes to infuse an openness in public decision
making and to make sure that the governance stays citizen centric and
corruption free . It is fast transferring medium of information. It has quick
response or outcome.
9. Source of positive influence for political parties-
Social media created channels of communication that play a key role in
circulating news, it has the power to change not just the message, but the
Dynamics of political corruption. By the live video ,blog, and posters
politicians are very much influenced voter for election.
 45

2.ii.Negative impact of social networking

1. Rumors and fake news-
Political issues are presently impacted by each story, regardless of being
genuine or not, that gets spread over the internet. It is getting increasingly
harder to isolate genuine news from fake news on the web. Social media
makes this refinement particularly befuddling. The consistent stream of
images, connections, and gossips about Political leaders is blend of truths and
untruths.There are additional sites with political predispositions or those
selling different unverified news. It is difficult to be affected by falsehood
posted by your companions , regardless of whether they do not mean to
misdirect you. It is in this way important to utilize a lot of wisdom before
taking anything for granted.
2. Confirmation bias
One of the concealed powers that work via online media is confirmation bias.
This is particularly incredible with regard to dubious topic, including Political
issues. In case you are just like the vast majority, most of your companions via
social media presumably share your viewpoint. This implies most by far of
tweets or Facebook posts you read on these sites .
Consequently, social websites may fortify our suppositions and make it
increasingly hard to engage in elective perspectives. In Political issues, it can
make individuals increasingly stubborn and less tolerant of others. Then again,
on the off chance that you endeavor to interface with grouping of individuals
with various perspectives, you can conquer confirmation bias and utilize social
media to make you increasingly liberal.
2.iii Making voters and Political parties click
The 16th Lok Sabha election which are underway are different from all the
previous edition in the history of independent India , and one of the major
differentiators is the way the digital media has been used to reach out to and
woo potential voters. Political parties are keeping track of digital footprint to
know who you are, what are your likes and dislikes, what you buy, among
other things to determine your political preference and woo you, the voter,
according to get support.
 46

Digital marketing data providers such as Precision Matchhelp political

parties in targeting the right audience. All consumers online who are above 18
years of age and hence are eligible for voting are the target audience. When a
person visit website or political parties or its associate website, is planted in
your computer. This tracks your browsing pattern after you have closed the
website and help an algorithm to build a demographics profile based on your
browsing pattern
2.iv. Somerecent election in India where social media do wonder in voters
mind
Social media has become an integral part of our daily lives- so much so that
it is all but impossible to imagine everyday life without it. We consume
news on social media, stay connected with our friends and family. Social
media is also increasingly playing a key role in elections. Political parties
and leaders are using it in a big way to communicate with voters,
disseminate their manifesto points, attack the opposition, propagate their
agenda and influence the voting behavior of people.
 Bihar election- social media had great impact on it
The RJD has ramped up its social media infastructure, with a bolstered IT
cell, volunteers, verified account, influencers etc. In Bihar a “digital politics”
strategy has been employed by major parties in the state, including
conservative one like RJD and JDU.
Centralized content teams are pushing state- specific matter to their cadre
in each seat. The fake news factories are also working non-stop, alongside.
Candidates have also hired agencies to manage their social media accounts.
These teams prepare local/ hyper local content which is for distribution in
their specific seat. Digital marketing teams have been hired to mobilize
voters, engage young people, raise money, support grassroots ground
operations.
Nitish Kumar is the third most followed CM on Twitter. Tejashwi witnessed a
higher increase in followers than Nitish in October. Tejashwi's number of
interactions per 1000 followers is 10x that of Nitish.
 47

Twitter is primarily being used to create a buzz in the media, and Tejashwi’s
high engagement rates have helped him gain print, electronic and digital media
traction, and get a good share of voices despite lesser resources than the ruling
combine. In Facebook number of likes for Tejashwi is 9x that of Nitish.

Delhi election-

From advertising on Google, which was never done before by the party, to
hiring professional help for advertisement and holding meetings with it’s social
media teams three months before the notification of the election, the
AamAadmi party fought a pitched social media battle in the run up to the 2020
Delhi Assembly election.

According to Facebook, AAP spent 69 lakh on advertisements from February

2019 to February 2020, during which the party fought the lol Sabha and Delhi
Assembly elections. Social media was performed a ultimate game changer for
party .

 Bengal election-

With the high voltage elections in Bengal scheduled in a few months, the
poll campaign is nearing a fever pitch . As the pandamic throws up new
challenges in election campaigning, political parties are heavily relying on
social media campaigns and using video conference tools to reach out to
larger audiences in this year’s battle for Bengal . From Amit Shah
addressing rallies via video link to Mamta Banerjee launching the “ mark
yourself safe from BJP” camp6, the election in Bengal is being fought
primarily on the digital landscape.
 48

Talking of Facebook spends , as per the latest data on Facebook ad

library , between January 9- February 7, 2021, west Bengal is the second
highest spender on the platform .

Conclusion:

From the analysis it is clear that social media play a significant impact on voting
behavior of young voters. Political parties will be successful in influencing the
people of metros city and semi urban cities. Social media is replacing the
traditional media but in remote areas traditional media still has significant impact
in creating awareness among people. It became a low cost medium and high
advantage medium for spreading information. It played a vital role in spreading
news to public. In Social networking sites government are post their upcoming
policy to know the public reaction. It has very useful tool for a good governance.
Online banners adds and other from of advertising has a significant impact on
young voters specially students which not only influence them but also help in
shaping their behavior. There is significant relationship with aged of people.
People use social media platforms to keep track of Political development,
technology play a vital role in giving first hand information that to in less time.

In Indian democracy social media went to participatory mode of millions of young

voters in electoral process. The advent of social media has enabled an
unprecedented empowerment and engagement of AamAdmi’ for expressing
Political opinions. A positive development of social media emergence has been
that the youth is talking about the political issues. Earlier the political discussions
were limited only to those who read newspapers, watched news channels or
participated in discussions in tea shop and clubs of village, but now social
 49

networking has made the youth of India to sit up and discuss Political issues. A
very large number of youth influenced by the social media have become
politically active in recent times. They spend time to analyze and discuss politics.
Now women are voting in large numbers it’s only because of Political awareness.

That’s why the politicians of India have adopted social media because they
know where and how to find the youth of the country on majority.

Reference
 Jordan cook (2013), “ socialMedia, American Interest, and the Arab Spring”
Dalhousie journal of interdisciplinary Management. Vol- 9, spring- 2013

 Dr. Atanumohapatra(2013), “ Lokpal and the role of media in propping up

anticorruption movement in India” IJSSR , Vol. 2(3) , March(2013)

 Parida S. K. and Das A. (2014), social media in relation to politics in

odisha, India: An overview. International journal of interdisciplinary and
multidisciplinary studies, vol. 1

 Mr. Ratnesh Dwivedi (2011)” The penetration of social media in

Governance, Political Reforms and Building Public Perception' Manthan:
International Journal Of Mass Communication 6.1 (2011):

 Berg. J. (2017). Digital democracy: studies of online Political participation.

Turku: Abo Akademi University
 50

 Chen(2016) “ can online social networks foster young adults” Civic

Engagement? Telematics and informatics, 34(5), 487-497.

 Annie Hellweg (2011)” Social media Sites Of Politicians Influence their

perception by constituent”. The Elon journal of undergraduate research in
communications. Vol. 2, No. 1. Spring 2011.

 ThomasFujwara, Karsten Muller, Carlo Schwarz “ The effect of social

media on election” evidence from the United States.

 Peter Riezebos, Sjoerd A. de vries , Petor w. de vries and Erik de zeeuw

“The effect of social media on Political partly perception and voting
Behavior”.

Newspaper:

 The Times of India

 The Hindu