Authors
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Arthur D. Santana
School of Journalism & Media Studies,
San Diego State University
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Lindita Camaj
Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston
Keywords:
Agenda setting, 2012 election campaign, social media, two-step flow
Abstract
The social networking site Facebook has risen to become an important campaign tool for politicians while also raising new questions about how its use is reshaping the agenda setting paradigm. This research examines the extent to which the Facebook messages of presidential nominees during the 2012 U.S. presidential campaign were transferred to the online public on Facebook and, via a two-step flow, to the greater citizen’s agenda. Findings demonstrate that in their political campaigns on Facebook, politicians are successfully transferring their first- and, to a lesser extent, second-level agendas to the Facebook public agenda, which largely mirrors the greater public agenda.
Author Biographies
Arthur D. Santana, School of Journalism & Media Studies,
San Diego State University
Arthur D. Santana, an assistant professor at the School of Journalism & Media Studies
, San Diego State University, is a former newspaper journalist who spent 14 years as a reporter and editor in newsrooms across the country. He received his B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin. He received his M.S. from Columbia University, and he earned his doctorate from the University of Oregon. Much of his research examines the evolution of journalism. He is particularly interested in online anonymity, interactive/participatory media, including social media, as well as news industry trends.
Lindita Camaj, Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston
Lindita Camaj is an assistant professor in journalism and mass communication at the Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston. She received her PhD and MA at the Indiana University School of Journalism, concentrating on political and international communication. Her research and teaching interests include media effects on political culture, agenda-setting and priming effects, Freedom of Information (FOIa) legislation, journalism studies, and media in Eastern Europe.
