The present study argues that political communication on social media is mediated by a platform's digital architecture, defined as the technical protocols that enable, constrain, and shape user behavior in a virtual space. A framework for understanding digital architectures is introduced, and four platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat) are compared along the typology. Using the 2016 US election as a case, interviews with three Republican digital strategists are combined with social media data to qualify the studyies theoretical claim that a platform's network structure, functionality, algorithmic filtering, and datafication model affect political campaign strategy on social media.
翻译:本研究报告认为,社交媒体上的政治沟通是由平台的数字结构来调解的,该结构被定义为在虚拟空间中促成、限制和塑造用户行为的技术协议。 引入了理解数字结构的框架,并按类型比较了四个平台(Facebook、Twitter、Instagram和Snapchat ) 。 以2016年的美国选举为例,与三名共和党数字战略专家的访谈与社交媒体数据相结合,对平台网络结构、功能、算法过滤和数据法化模型影响社交媒体政治竞选策略的理论论称进行了定性。