Social media is helping political candidates connect with voters, but misinformation remains a concern
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MORGANTOWN - National polling shows more than half of US adults get their news from social media. From national to local news, research shows unverified information spreads across those platforms fast, which can leave voters like West Virginia University student Megan Gary feeling unsure about who they can trust on social media.
"I would like to trust what I see on social media but at the end of the day I know that I shouldn't," Gary said.
That uncertainty is not only affecting college students, though; people of all ages are receiving some news from social media and struggling to identify what's fact and what's fake.
According to the Pew Research Center, over half of US adults say they get at least some news from social media. This holds at the local level, too. However, another Pew Research Center survey found that only 56% of US adults trust what they see.
A West Virginia Today Instagram survey indicated that all 23 respondents had seen at least some political content on social media. Nine respondents said they get most of their political news from social media.
"One big concern is that it's much easier to spread misinformation on social media than it was using traditional media," Matthew Jacobsmeier, an associate professor in the department of political science at WVU, said.
There isn't a fact-checker to ensure what you're seeing is factual. You also can't force social media platforms to do the fact-checking for you and that is why it can easily spread, he said.
Social media also plays a role in polarization.
According to a study published in Science, people who viewed and interacted with anti-democratic attitudes and partisan animosity posts showed an increase in polarization and increased negative feelings toward the political outgroup. Which widens the gap in political divide between parties and lessens the amount of news one will receive from other point of views.
Nowadays, if you disagree with someone on a policy, it leads to even more division between people rather than just a simple disagreement, which can be in part due to social media and how people receive their news, Jacobsmeier said.
But he said social media has some positive qualities around elections and politics. For example, it invites people to openly share their own thoughts and opinions, while politicians can directly connect to voters.
Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, who is running for re-election, said that the rise of social media has given politicians a new way to connect with voters during the past five or six years.
"There's so much more activity now with social media. All the different options that are available to you as a candidate to reach people, and it affords you a lot of opportunities at a much lower cost," he said.
Delegate John Williams, D-Monongalia, who is running against Oliverio for his state Senate seat, said social media can also encourage politicians to try new ways to engage with voters of different ages.
Williams juggles a soccer ball on TikTok while talking about the issues and posts Instagram stories while knocking on doors. He says social media is an efficient way to connect with voters.
"Being on social media is how you're able to get that information out. In an educated public who knows what's going on in Charleston, they're going to be able to hold the Legislature to account," Williams said.
However, he is concerned about misinformation spreading on the platform and warns voters to be cautious.
"Anyone with good ideas and a cell phone can get their ideas out there. As citizens, we have to be careful of that too because that means there are a lot of ideas out there that are coming from false information," he said.
Gary said this can make it hard for voters to trust the information they receive on social media. Even though she would like to trust the easily accessible information, she knows she can't with the amount of misinformation that can quickly spread.
Social media influencers are becoming more politically active, which is complicating the media landscape. According to Jacobsmeier, some politicians pay influencers for political support and endorsements on their platforms, often without telling viewers they are being paid to share their support.
"It's much easier for campaigns to pay influencers and influencers not let anybody know that they've been paid to promote a certain candidate or certain policy," Jacobsmeier said.
The lack of honesty can have viewers believing people who aren't being truthful on why they are promoting certain political candidates. However, there is no way to stop social media from becoming a strong force in political campaigning and news, he said.