Use of Instagram in the Process of Political Communication: Comparative Analysis of Leaders’ Instagram Accounts
Abstract
The new media tools that emerged with the development of technology have also affected
politics closely. Political actors, who have been using traditional mass media for many years to
inform the electorate about their policies, promises, and projects, to influence them, and to
attract them, have started to use new media tools effectively. Social media, which has become
the most popular channel of politics in the new period, has become one of the indispensable
tools of today’s politicians. Political actors, who can reach a much wider group of voters with
instant sharing according to the mass media, use this channel in non-election periods, especially
during election periods. Instagram, which is the most preferred platform after Twitter, allows
users to share texts as well as photos and videos. The opportunities offered to users by
Instagram, whose popularity is increasing day by day, have pushed political actors to actively
use this channel. Political actors, who met with their voters via Instagram with visual shares,
had the chance to enter into two-way communication with their target audience and to be more
visible. In the study, it was revealed how Instagram is used as a means of political
communication by political actors. The official Instagram account of the leaders of political
parties in Turkey has formed the universe of this work. The study sample includes the official
Instagram accounts of the AK Party, CHP, HDP, MHP, and İYİ Party leaders selected by the
purposeful sampling method. In the study, leaders’ posts were examined by subjecting the
content analysis of the one week between January 2, 2023, and January 9, 2023, which is the
non-election period. In light of the findings obtained, it was comparatively revealed how leaders
used Instagram accounts as a means of political communication.
Keywords: Political communication, social media, Instagram
Author: Tuba KALÇIK ÜSTÜNDAĞ
