Tom Carlson

Riding the Web 2.0 Wave: Candidates on YouTube in the 2007 Finnish National Elections

ABSTRACT This article seeks to expand the research on the adoption of social networking Web sites in electoral politics beyond the U.S. by exploring the use and impact of the YouTube video-sharing Web site in the 2007 Finnish national elections. Focusing on uploaded videos featuring candidates, the study shows that YouTube played a marginal role in the elections. Only 6% of the candidates disseminated YouTube videos. Online, the videos did not generally attract much public interest. However, the study also demonstrates that YouTube gave a voice to certain minor electoral players and ordinary citizens in the elections. The findings are compared with scholarly observations from the 2006 U.S. midterm elections—the first “YouTube elections.”

It's a Man's World?

Abstract This study focuses on the role of gender in Internet campaigning. Empirically, the research is expanded beyond the United States by exploring candidate Web campaigning in the 2003 Finnish parliamentary elections. The results of the empirical analysis show that female candidates put up Web sites in a higher degree than their male counterparts. However, gender itself is not a significant factor for being online. Moreover, utilizing a matched-pairs design, the analysis suggests that male and female candidates take advantage of the new communication technology in a similar way and that female candidates do not build a distinct feminine candidate profile online.

Taking Risks in Social Media Campaigning: The Early Adoption of Blogging by Candidates

This article concerns whether and how political candidates adopt social media in their election campaigns. For campaigns, the openness and interactivity of social media tools bring about risks in terms of losing control over the message. Departing from a cost-benefit perspective, this study addresses the question as to whether certain groups of candidates – differing in incumbency status, party type, gender, generation and urbanization level of the constituency – are more prone to adopt and utilize new social media tools and practices. In order to study how candidates approach social media in an early stage when the benefits are uncertain and the risks are apparent, candidate blogging in the 2007 Finnish national elections is examined. The findings show that the candidates generally were not ready to pursue the full potential of blogs and thereby to accept the risks associated with this open, interactive and personalized way of campaigning. Rather, the candidates took a cautious approach by not engaging extensively in the social media features and practices. However, female candidates and candidates not representing major parties were more likely to utilize a broader range of social media features and practices. The study adds support to the claim that campaigns do not simply adopt and utilize novel social media tools with the purpose of being innovative; they assess risks, costs and benefits. Social media do not alter the basic need of campaigns to control the message and to avoid stress in the campaign organization.

Expanding the Online Political Demos but Maintaining the Status Quo? Internet and Social Media Use by Finnish Voters Prior to Elections, 2003–15

Though reinforcement/mobilisation theories regarding the impact of the Internet on citizens’ political engagement are predictive, there are few longitudinal studies on how the profile of the citizens using the Internet for political purposes has changed and how this relates to such theoretical perspectives. Using survey data from four Finnish parliamentary elections, 2003–15, this longitudinal study examines the evolution of the predictors of belonging to the segment of citizens who extensively engage in searching for political information online during the elections. Additionally, the research longitudinally studies the evolution of the drivers of citizens deeming online sources as important for informing their voting decisions. In light of demographic and resource-based traits, a mobilisation trend is detected across time in the analyses. As to factors concerning attitudes and orientation to politics, however, a more evident reinforcement trend has emerged. These patterns are also evident when examining social media engagement through searching for political information during campaigns. Although the Internet and social media are becoming important for a demographically increasingly diverse group of citizens, especially the young, it is those already predisposed for doing so who have, over time, engaged politically to an increasing degree through these channels.

Persuading Beyond Words: Visual Appeals in the 2014 European Election Campaign

This chapter, stating that visual persuasion is an important feature of election campaigning, focuses on visual appeals in posters and spot ads by national parties in the 2014 European elections. It (a) describes to what extent and how different visual appeals were used and (b) examines the impact of political culture in member countries and political parties on visual strategies. The results show a widespread use of visual appeals in both posters and commercials throughout Europe. Party leaders, candidates and common people are often depicted, likewise national and European symbols. Although an Eastern European as well as a Eurosceptic visual style may be discernable, the findings overall point to a common visual campaigning culture in the EU.