Download TOPIC: An assessment of the use of pictures in the

TOPIC:
The Use of Web 2.0 Technologies as
political campaigning tools for the 2012
December Elections in Ghana
(An evaluation of the activities of the
two major political parties -NPP & NDC
By
Adwoa S. Amankwah(CSUC), Dr.E. Bossman Asare
(Political Science Dep’t –UG) and Ginn Assibey Bonsu
Department of Communication Studies-CSUC
Background
Citizens need factual and credible information in a
democracy to enable them make independent
judgments and informed choices.
Social media- Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs and
videos on YouTube- enabler for information exchange
between citizens and their governments (U. S. States
Dept. 2012).
BACKGROUND
Politicians and journalists originate and moderate those
political discourses. Now the development of Web 2.0
technologies and social media enhances content creation
by users.
Channels - political blogs or discussion forums, chat
rooms etc.
Implication- “gatekeeper” role of journalists - minimised
(Stieglitz, S.; Brockman, T. and Dang_Xuan, L. (2012).
BACKGROUND
Young voters spend more time online on social networks
such as Facebook or MySpace than watching television
or reading newspapers (Stieglitz, S.; Brockmann, T. and
Dang-Xuan, L. 2012, OECD, 2009).
Especially young people were inspired to engage in
political discussions after getting in touch with them by
using social software as the communication platform
(Chen 2009; Kushin & Kichener 2009).
INTRODUCTION
“A popular government without popular information or
the means of acquiring it is but a prologue to a farce or
a tragedy, or perhaps both,” -4th U.S. president, James
Madison, in 1822.
35th president, John F. Kennedy, 1922
“The flow of ideas, the capacity to make informed
choices, the ability to criticize, all of the assumptions
on which political democracy rests, depend largely on
communications” (U.S. State Dept.-2012).
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
•Paucity of information on the use of web 2.0
technologies for political campaigning in developing
countries particularly Ghana.
•Political interaction on social media is typically
asynchronous
•Thus the Internet has not been fully used to increase
interactivity in election campaigns (Gong & Lips, 2009).
This is attributed to fears of ‘opening the gate’ for attacks
from their opponents (Coleman, 2001; Ward, et. Al.,
2006).
PURPOSE
1. To find out the online agenda of the two political
parties and recipients’ expectations according to the
comments and responses of users.
2. To examine the communication model appropriate
for online interaction in a participatory democracy of
a developing country.
OBJECTIVES
1. Determine the predominant themes of the agenda set
by the two political parties and myjoyonline on their
websites and social media platforms.
2. Gauge the responses of users of Web 2.0 technologies
to determine the issues they want addressed by
politicians.
3. Outline the political sentiments of the language used
by politicians and their followers on the formers’
websites and social media platforms.
4. Determine whether communication on web 2.0
technologies is symmetrical or asymmetrical.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. What is the relationship between both the NPP and
NDC ideologies and their manifestoes?
2. What are the predominant themes of stories and
headlines that set the agenda on the websites of the
NPP, NDC and Myjoyonline?
3. What is the link between the major themes in their
manifestoes and their postings?
4. What is the link between postings by politicians and
comments by users?
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
5. Is there any relationship between the issues raised by
users of social media and the social reality?
6. What are the elements of propaganda in the agenda set
by politicians as well as in the responses of users?
7. What is the language used by politicians and their
followers on web 2.0 technologies in the campaigning
season?
8. Is there any association between the agenda set by
politicians, the responses of users of the social media
and the outcome of the elections?
JUSTIFICATION/SIGNIFICANCE
The study will provide information on the effective use of
web 2.0 technologies for synchronous political
campaigning in a participatory democracy.
The results will benefit
• Political parties.
• Politicians.
• Stakeholders in the ICT industry in Ghana, Africa and
the international community.
2.0 Web 2.0 Technologies and political
campaigning
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Definitionof Key Concepts
- Political Campaigning
- Elections
-Political Party
-Public Paricipation
-Content Analysis
-LIWC (2007)
2.2 New Media
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Websites
Overview of related studies
Creighton (2005) defines public participation as the process
by which public concerns, needs and values are
incorporated into governmental and corporate decisionmaking. Thus e-participation is the process of using the
Internet to create dialogue between the elected and the
electorate.
Related to this concept, Karpf (2009) introduces the notion
of “Politics 2.0”, i.e. using the internet reduced transaction
costs and its condition of information abundance to build
more participatory, interactive political institutions.
Overview of related studies
The recent U.S. presidential campaign in 2008 has shown
that Web 2.0 has become an important tool for political
communication and persuasion (Towner et. Al. 2011;
Hoffner & Rehkoff 2011).
Honeycutt and Herring (2009) showed that Twitter is used
not only for one-way communication but often serves as a
means of conversation, (the @ sign symbolises a dialogue).
Global and national trends in internet
usage
BACKGROUND
Ghana has a population
of 24, 658, 823 million people.
Out of this number, 16,595,387 representing 67.3% are
literate (Ghana Statistical Service, 2010 Housing and
Population Census). Two million three hundred and
twenty-nine thousand four hundred and nineteen
(2,329,419) representing representing 9.45% of the total
population are internet users (CIA World Factbook,
2009). Within this category facebook users comprise
1,644,560 (6.67%) whiles Twitter users are …
Global and national trends in internet
usage
30000000
25000000
Keys
20000000
15000000
1
Population of Ghana
2
Literates in Ghana
3
Internet users in Ghana
4
Facebook users in Ghana
10000000
5000000
0
Series1
1
2
3
4
24658823
16595387
2329419
1644560
LIKES FOR NPP AND NDC
Subscriber base as in likes for the Facebook page –NPP’s
Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo-Addo is 164, 185
represent 9.98% of facebook users in Ghana
101, 158 likes (6.15% of facebook users in Ghana- NDC’s
President John Dramani Mahama
LIKES FOR NPP AND NDC
Likes for the Facebook page of the presidential candidates of the major parties
180000
160000
140000
120000
1
likes for Nana
Addo Dankwah
Akuffo-Addo
2
likes for
President
John Dramani
Mahama
100000
80000
60000
40000
20000
0
Series1
1
2
164185
101158
Information on political parties, the EC
and CDD
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New Patriotic Party (NPP); aims, objectives and core
themes in manifesto.
National Democratic Congress (NDC); aims, objectives
and core themes in manifesto.
Myjoyonline.com.
Center for Democratic Development (CDD); purpose
and functions.
Electoral Commission (EC) ; same as above.
3.0 An overview of theories of
communication for political
development
• Agenda Setting Theory – McCombs and Shaw
(1972, McQuail, 2008)
• Uses and Gratifications Theory (Elihu Katz)
(McQuail, 2008; Perse, 1990).
• Symmetrical and Assymmetrical Communication
Model (Grunig and Hunt) (Chapplet and
Kitchenmann, 2005; Gong and Lips 2009).
AGENDA SETTING THEORY
The agenda setting theory (McCombs and Shaw, 1972).
They held the view that the news media construct our view
of the world. Agenda-Setting posits that the media always
set the agenda, that is, those items the media deem
important is identical to the public agenda, or what the
public deems important.
AGENDA SETTING THEORY
The arrival of the internet and the new media present
several and diverse relevant sources of news. With the
advent of web 2.0 technologies, public debate is
represented by a set of salient issues and the agenda
originates from public opinion (McQuail, 2008).
The media then offer competing views on issues; people
tend to attend selectively to sources of news and messages
they already agree with, leading to reinforcement and not
a change of opinion (McQuail, 2008).
USES AND GRATIFICATION
This approach derives from the search for explanations of
the great appeal of certain staple media (new media)
contents that border on the question of why people use
the media and what they use them for.
Audiences are motivated to use the media for purposes of
information, relaxation, companionship, diversion or
escape; personal guidance, relaxation, adjustment,
information and identity formation (McQuail, 2008;
Perse, 1990).
1. The two-way asymmetrical/asynchronic model
It allows delayed interaction between both sides- neither
party can choose to interact in accordance with their
convenient time (Chapplet and Kitchenmann, 2005;
Gong and Lips 2009). Egs. Emails, blogs, forums or
campaign sites for discussion etc.
2. Two-way symmetrical/synchronic model
Chapplet and Kitchenmann, 2005; Gong and Lips 2009This allows parties and candidates to interact in real
time with voters. This takes the form of either instant
messaging or on-line conferencing.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
4.0 METHODOLOGY
Research Design
It is a exploratory study that compares the Websites of the
NPP and NDC and their corresponding social media
platforms – Twitter & Facebook
Data Analysis Tools
Content analysis would be used for the website content of
this study.
The Linguistic Inquiry Word Count Software (LIWC 2007) by
Pennebaker and Chung would be used to analyse the social
media content i.e political sentiments, mood, tone and
expectations of senders of the posts and tweets as well as
those of the users.
Population: Website content of the NPP, the NDC and
myjoyonline.com as well as their social media content as in
posts and comments on Facebook and tweets and
responses on Twitter for the study period within the 2012
election year.
Sample Size: Website Content
NPP:
NDC:
myjoyonline:
Facebook
NPP:
NDC:
myjoyonline:
Twitter
NPP:
NDC:
myjoyonline:
SAMPLING
Study Period
The period of 7th October to 4th December was chosen for
inclusion in the sample. We purposively selected the last
quarter of the year because that is when effective
campaigning intensified and the political parties’ agenda
were more clearly defined.
Sampling Technique
With a systematc random start of 7th October, every other
day’s content was selected for inclusion and analysis in this
study, giving us a total of 30 days’ web content.
• Sampling Unit: Post, Tweet, Comment
Data collection methods
• Document Review
Data Collection Instruments
• Coding Sheets
• Coding Schedule
Data Source: Primary Data – Unused data online
Secondary Data: Literature – previous studies
dataDATA ANALYSIS METHODS
DATA ANALYSIS METHODS
• The Study uses the Predictive Analytic Software to
generate descriptive statistics- frequencies and
percentages and graphs
• Documentary Analysis to establish correlation
ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
Operate according to strict ethical standards of nonpartisanship and the use of the Linguistic Inquiry Word
Count (LIWC-2007) to ensure a higher level of objectivity.
RESOURCES REQUIRED FOR THE STUDY
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Internet Usage
Printing Costs
Coders Allowances:
References
Appendices
REFERENCES
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1. Stieglitz, S. and Dang-Xuan, L. (2012). Political Communication and Influence through
Microblogging – An Empirical Analysis of Sentiment in Twitter Messages and Retweet Behavior.
Proceedings of the 45th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS), 3500-3509.
2. Howard, P. N. (2006). New Media Campaigns and the Managed Citizen, New York:
Cambridge University Press.
3. Papacharissi, Z. (2002). The Virtual Sphere: The Internet as a Public Sphere. New Media and
Society, 4 (1).
4. Tewksburry, D. (1996). Exposure to the New Media in a Presidential Primary Campaign.
Political Communication, 23 (3), 313-332.
5. Forbes (2012). Twitter to Reach 500M Registered Users on Wednesday. Just Another Day in
the Life of the Social Media Fun House.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikamorphy/2012/02/21/twitter-toreach- 500m-registered-userson-wednesday-just-another-day-in-the-life-of-the-social-media-funhouse.
REFERENCES
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6. OECD (2009). OECD Broadband Portal. 02/26/2010.
http://www.oecd.org/document/54/0,3343,en_2649_34225_38690102_1_1_1_1,00.html.
7. Wattal, S., Schuff, D., Mandviwalla, M., and Williams, C. (2010). Web 2.0 and Politics: The
2008 U.S. Presidential Election and an E-Politics research agenda. MIS Quarterly, 34 (4).
8. Ghana Statistical Service (2010). Housing and population census.
9. CIA World Factbook (2009). Explanation of internet users in Ghana. Retrieved November 26,
2012 from http:// www.socialbakers.com
10. Bächle, M. (2006). Social Software, Informatik-Spektrum, 29, 121-124.
11. O'Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0: Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next
Generation of Software, O'Reilly.
12. Green, D. T. and Pearson, J. M. (2005). Social Software and Cyber Networks: Ties That
Bind or Weak Associations within the Political Organization? Proceedings of the 38th Hawaii International
Conference on System Sciences.
REFERENCES
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15. Towner, T.L. and Dulio, D.A. (2011). The Web 2.0 Election: Does the Online Medium
Matter? Journal of Political Marketing, 10 (1), 165-188.
16. Hoffner, C. and Rehkoff, R.A. (2011). Young Votersʼ Responses to the 2004 U.S.
Presidential Election: Social Identity, Perceived Media Influence, and Behavioral Outcomes. Journal of
Communication, 61(4), 732-757.
17. Chen, H. (2009). AI, E-government, and Politics 2.0. IEEE Intelligent Systems, 24(5), 64–67.
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22. Nurhadryani, Y., Maslow, S. & Yamamoto, H. (2009). ‘Democracy 1.0’ Meets ‘Web 2.0’: E
Campaigning and the Role of ICTs in Indonesia’s Political Reform Process since 1998. Published
thesis. Japan: Tohoku University.
•
23. Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism. Analysis report of
how presidential candidates in U.S use wed and social media. Retrieved October 16, 2012 from
http://www.journalism.org/analysis_report/how_presidential_candidates_use_web_and_social_m
edia.
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24. A responsible press office in the digital age (2012). Bureau of International Programs: United
States Department of State.
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25. Ward, S. and Gibson R. (2003) On-line and on message? Candidate websites in the 2001
General Election. In British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Vol. 5, No. 2, May
2003, pp. 188-205. Retrieved 12th July from Blackwell Synergy database.
•
26. McQuail, D. (2008). Mass communication theory (5th ed). Los Angeles: Sage Inc.
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27. Tench, R. and Yeoman, L. (2006). Exploring public relations. New York: Prentice Hall.