How social media influences first time voters: A study of the vadodara parliamentary constituency in lok sabha elections 2019 Thakur Dharmendra1, Shendurnikar Nidhi2,* 1Research Scholar, Faculty of Journalism and Communication, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Gujarat, India 2Assistant Professor, Faculty of Journalism and Communication, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Gujarat, India *nidhi.shendurnikar-jc@msubaroda.ac.in
1td254080@gmail.com
Online published on 15 March, 2021. Abstract This study investigates the role of social media in the Lok Sabha elections of 2019 and its influence on first time voters in the Vadodara Parliamentary Constituency of Gujarat. The core objective of the study was to understand the nature and extent of social media use by first time voters in the city of Vadodara. This was achieved by carrying out a survey among 100 first time voters to understand their social media use during the elections and the kind of influence it wielded on their voting behavior. The findings from the research demonstrate that as political parties and political actors made extensive use of social media platforms to effectively convey messages to voters; social media was the most preferred source of news for first time voters. However, respondents did not easily trust content on social media and exhibited caution regarding the authenticity of information shared on social media platforms. First time voters used social media primarily to gather information about the elections, connect with like-minded people and look for positive content, while steering away from fake news. They prefer social media over traditional media due to its convenience in terms of access, interactivity and diversity of opinions. Top Keywords First time voters, Indian politics, Lok Sabha Election 2019, Political parties, Social media, Vadodara Parliamentary constituency. Top |