Microtargeting through interacting: The use of community groups for political campaigning.

Abstract

Research on microtargeting is normally focused on advertising to specific demographics or interest groups and communities. However, political campaigning has begun to approach microtargeting using the spaces for interpersonal and community discussion facilitated by social media platforms and applications. Targeted messaging through conversations within community group spaces ensures greater resonance for the messages and enhanced proximity between the messenger and the targeted community. This strategy is explored through three case studies. First, we explore the activities of candidates and councillors representing the Green party of England and Wales who use Facebook neighbourhood community groups to promote their individual activities and campaigns, as well as linking local concerns to party policy, which evidences a co-created form of microtargeting. Secondly, we analyse the activities of supporters of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil’s neighbourhood and community groups, who increased the salience of issues that favoured their candidate. Thirdly, we focus on the dissemination of pro-Russian content to Orthodox Christian community groups in the Balkans on the Telegram platform, involving real people as well as some fake accounts and potential bots, inciting fears of the destructive liberal values of the European Union. Our data suggests the strategies and tactics adhere to the notion of microtargeting, and may be highly effective, but highlight ethical concerns and the challenges that these practices pose for democracy.