The role of the social networks in the political process: positive ta negative consequence

Abstract

Social networks are an integral part of the modern Internet space. The Internet space, in turn, acts as a powerful tool of influence, which has pronounced social and political consequences. In addition, it promotes the development of new forms of communication, including political. Let us emphasize that the role of social media in politics is constantly growing compared to traditional mass media. Each of the popular social networks currently has more than a million users and their number is constantly increasing. It is not surprising that political figures are gradually joining media personalities active in social networks. Today, it is difficult to imagine a famous foreign or domestic politician who would not have a page on social networks. Note that social networks act as an important component of the modern political space and become one of the main tools of communication between the political elite and civil society. On the other hand, social networks have become an effective tool of foreign and domestic political PR-campains, they are deliberately used by political elites to influence the consciousness and behavior of voters. Therefore, the study of their role in the political process, as well as the consequences of their use, is becoming increasingly relevant. We note that social networks have permanent positive characteristics, namely: low entry threshold, speed of information transmission, lack of space-time boundaries of interaction, etc. At the same time, the use of social networks has pronounced negative consequences: the transformation of real politics into a symbolic one, the spread of negative or false information, political manipulation, trolling, bot farms, etc., and their active use complicates the process of rational awareness of political reality. Let us emphasize that the democratization of the political process does not mean a complete lack of control over the information that is distributed through social media. Therefore, today we should talk not so much about the growing role of social networks in the political process, but about its social and political consequences.