(Tar)getting you

The use of online political targeted messages on Facebook

Bibliographic Data

ID5260426
AuthorsSanne Kruikemeier (0000-0002-8053-8200, University of Amsterdam, corresponding author), Susan Vermeer (0000-0002-9829-8057, University of Amsterdam), Nadia Metoui (0000-0001-6690-2937, University of Amsterdam), Tom Dobber (0000-0002-6657-4037, University of Amsterdam), Brahim Zarouali (0000-0003-1042-4635, University of Amsterdam)
Year2022
Volume9
Issue2
Publication date2022-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueBig Data & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2053-9517 • E-ISSN: 2053-9517
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/20539517221089626
OpenAlexW4289351693
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited49

This study examines how mainstream political actors and other organizations use political targeted messages. For this purpose, a data set from ProPublica is used. The study examines 55,918 sponsored Facebook ads that were posted by 236 political actors (i.e., political elites and other organizations) in the United States. (1) Topic classification was used to identify policy issues, (2) network analysis to identify the main policy issues from the various political actors, and (3) Sankey diagrams to visualize microtargeted messages. Our findings indicate that actors focus on traditionally owned issues (i.e., the Democratic Party: environmental policy, social issues, and social welfare; the Republican Party: foreign affairs, law, and government finances). No clear evidence for a focus on wedge issues can be found, however, some first indications (e.g., a focus on reproductive rights, LGBTQ+) are present in a targeted media environment. All in all, the current study helps us to understand in what way political actors deploy targeted messages

Democracy · Mainstream · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Social media · Sociology · Computational and Text Analysis Methods · Law · Media Studies and Communication · Public Administration · Social Media and Politics

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Open DOIOpen Access