The survey says that 55% of registered voters have watched political videos online this election season. The Pew Research Center asked about six different types of political videos and published these results:
-8% watch video news reports about the election or politics
-40% watch previously recorded videos of candidate speeches, press conferences, or debates
-39% watch informational videos online that explain a political issue
-37% watch humorous or parody videos dealing with political issues
-36% watch political advertisements online
28% watch live videos of candidate speeches, press conferences, or debates
There is great news for politicians in this survey, 52 percent of register voters say that people have recommended political videos for them to watch; and that social networking sites played a prominent role in the process.
Social media is not only a great way to share your own opinions but an easy way to share content that you enjoyed or are interested in.
More information on this study can be found at: http://bit.ly/TqEeyj.
This is the Jimirro Center's blog for the 2012 Presidential Election and the use of Social Media to express beliefs, opinions and values.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Penn State Students Speak: Election 2012
During the week leading up to the 2012 presidential election, a focus group was conducted among ten Penn State undergraduate students in order to better understand how they use social media in regards to obtaining and sharing political information and opinions.
Penn State students reported using social media to obtain political information, but they are split when it comes to using social media to share their own political beliefs. Some students believe they can influence their friends by posting political opinions on social media websites, but others feel as if their friends would find it bothersome or simply overlook it.
“I share my political opinions on social media so I can convince others to agree with me,” said one student. “I can influence my friends' political opinions because they know that I'm well-informed and agree with me on other things…so they probably agree with me on the rest of issues.”
Another student sees it slightly differently. “I think that our generation needs to talk about the important political issues of today so we can make an educated choice when we vote. I do not think my opinions influence my friends but I do think my opinions could provoke my friend’s interest to look into the topic a little more.”
Students at Penn State view social media as both an advantageous and detrimental tool for sharing and obtaining information regarding politics. Most of the students that took part in the focus group believe there are strong pros to sharing and obtaining information regarding politics through social media.
Despite this, all of the students surveyed cited the biggest concern to this process as being the opportunity for information/ opinions to be shared that are loosely based on the factual information or simply are factually false. Said one student, “I think social media is an excellent way to share information. It is an easy access tool that most people my age use. Information is constantly being traded for people to see. In this way it was very advantageous. The only cons might be involved with the people that post claims without support.
Another student believes the cons of social media and politics outweigh the pros, “Although it can potentially be a useful atmosphere for open dialogue, opinion, and discourse--from my experience-- it is utilized as a platform for the disgruntled ramblings of idiots. There are too many ill-informed people that blindly write posts based on self-opinion rather than actual knowledge.”
Penn State students reported using social media to obtain political information, but they are split when it comes to using social media to share their own political beliefs. Some students believe they can influence their friends by posting political opinions on social media websites, but others feel as if their friends would find it bothersome or simply overlook it.
“I share my political opinions on social media so I can convince others to agree with me,” said one student. “I can influence my friends' political opinions because they know that I'm well-informed and agree with me on other things…so they probably agree with me on the rest of issues.”
Another student sees it slightly differently. “I think that our generation needs to talk about the important political issues of today so we can make an educated choice when we vote. I do not think my opinions influence my friends but I do think my opinions could provoke my friend’s interest to look into the topic a little more.”
Students at Penn State view social media as both an advantageous and detrimental tool for sharing and obtaining information regarding politics. Most of the students that took part in the focus group believe there are strong pros to sharing and obtaining information regarding politics through social media.
Despite this, all of the students surveyed cited the biggest concern to this process as being the opportunity for information/ opinions to be shared that are loosely based on the factual information or simply are factually false. Said one student, “I think social media is an excellent way to share information. It is an easy access tool that most people my age use. Information is constantly being traded for people to see. In this way it was very advantageous. The only cons might be involved with the people that post claims without support.
Another student believes the cons of social media and politics outweigh the pros, “Although it can potentially be a useful atmosphere for open dialogue, opinion, and discourse--from my experience-- it is utilized as a platform for the disgruntled ramblings of idiots. There are too many ill-informed people that blindly write posts based on self-opinion rather than actual knowledge.”
Penn State, #Election2012 and Social Media
Penn State, #Election2012, and Social Media
In order to better understand Penn State students’ social media habits and the 2012 presidential election, undergraduate students filled out a survey indicating their social media behavior. We elected to focus on students’ social media behavior regarding the two most popular presidential candidates, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. The survey aimed to gain insight into how many Penn State students closely follow the major candidates’ online activity.
Seventy percent of students follow Barack Obama’s official Twitter account, while 85 percent follow Mitt Romney’s Twitter account. Although Twitter has grown in terms of both popularity and user numbers, from this survey we learned that more people “like” the presidential candidates pages on Facebook, with 79 percent “liking” Barack Obama’s official Facebook page and 91 percent “liking” Mitt Romney’s official Facebook page.
Over 82 percent of Penn State undergraduates surveyed report following political blogs, Facebook pages, or Twitter accounts. Thirty-six percent of Penn State undergraduate students indicated they use these these sites to obtain political information “sometimes,” with only 12 percent indicating they use these sites to obtain election information “very often.”
Still, many students do not allow their beliefs to be swayed by what they read on social media--in fact, 65 percent of students reported that they have never changed their attitudes, opinions, or political beliefs because of something they saw posted on social media.
In order to better understand Penn State students’ social media habits and the 2012 presidential election, undergraduate students filled out a survey indicating their social media behavior. We elected to focus on students’ social media behavior regarding the two most popular presidential candidates, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. The survey aimed to gain insight into how many Penn State students closely follow the major candidates’ online activity.
Seventy percent of students follow Barack Obama’s official Twitter account, while 85 percent follow Mitt Romney’s Twitter account. Although Twitter has grown in terms of both popularity and user numbers, from this survey we learned that more people “like” the presidential candidates pages on Facebook, with 79 percent “liking” Barack Obama’s official Facebook page and 91 percent “liking” Mitt Romney’s official Facebook page.
Over 82 percent of Penn State undergraduates surveyed report following political blogs, Facebook pages, or Twitter accounts. Thirty-six percent of Penn State undergraduate students indicated they use these these sites to obtain political information “sometimes,” with only 12 percent indicating they use these sites to obtain election information “very often.”
Still, many students do not allow their beliefs to be swayed by what they read on social media--in fact, 65 percent of students reported that they have never changed their attitudes, opinions, or political beliefs because of something they saw posted on social media.
PSU Students Use Social Media to Obtain Election Information, Survey Finds
PSU Students Use Social Media to Obtain Election Information, Survey Finds
Social media has had a profound impact on the way we gather information about politics. Link sharing and online discussions via social media have become critical for civic engagement in the past few years.
So now we want to know--how have Penn State students been using social media to gather information on the 2012 presidential election?
A survey of nearly 60 Penn State students, conducted in October 2012, shed light on this issue. The survey was conducted by the Jimirro Center for the Study of Media Influence, an organization in the Penn State College of Communications. The center is dedicated to exploring and unveiling the relationship between the mass media and the public, as well as determining how that relationship shapes public opinion.
The results of the survey indicate that social media plays an important role in the way Penn State students obtain election information. In fact, 72.4 percent of respondents said they use sites like Facebook and Twitter to seek out information regarding the 2012 presidential election. Still, while these students use social media to seek out information, they aren’t so keen on sharing what they find themselves--56.9 percent of students said they do not share political posts on their own personal social profiles.
For those students who do use social media to share political information, beliefs, and opinions, 51.7 percent of students reported sharing such information “sometimes.” Another 24.1 percent said they did so “rarely,” and 24.1 said they do so “often.” A whopping 98.3 percent of students said their friends use social media to post their political beliefs.
Do you use social media to obtain political information or share your political beliefs? Share your thoughts in a comment below!
Social media has had a profound impact on the way we gather information about politics. Link sharing and online discussions via social media have become critical for civic engagement in the past few years.
So now we want to know--how have Penn State students been using social media to gather information on the 2012 presidential election?
A survey of nearly 60 Penn State students, conducted in October 2012, shed light on this issue. The survey was conducted by the Jimirro Center for the Study of Media Influence, an organization in the Penn State College of Communications. The center is dedicated to exploring and unveiling the relationship between the mass media and the public, as well as determining how that relationship shapes public opinion.
The results of the survey indicate that social media plays an important role in the way Penn State students obtain election information. In fact, 72.4 percent of respondents said they use sites like Facebook and Twitter to seek out information regarding the 2012 presidential election. Still, while these students use social media to seek out information, they aren’t so keen on sharing what they find themselves--56.9 percent of students said they do not share political posts on their own personal social profiles.
For those students who do use social media to share political information, beliefs, and opinions, 51.7 percent of students reported sharing such information “sometimes.” Another 24.1 percent said they did so “rarely,” and 24.1 said they do so “often.” A whopping 98.3 percent of students said their friends use social media to post their political beliefs.
Do you use social media to obtain political information or share your political beliefs? Share your thoughts in a comment below!
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