Roving Teen: Smartphone Politics

Social media seems to be taking part in nearly every aspect of our lives—education, fashion, news, and the list goes on. There is no doubt that it affects our lives in various ways, but is that true with how young people involve themselves in politics too?

For Emma Edwards, a college student, access to social media has made her more inclined to vote.

“I feel so much urge to vote, like I actually need to help change something, just because now I have more information,” Edwards said.

A lot of her information comes from social media, as well as for others her age, according to Edwards.

“You can definitely see the political leaders targeting that…and trying to lean into the Gen Z vote through social media and push things through that,” Edwards said.

Anna Opalsky, a Torrey Pines High School graduate, expressed a similar opinion.

“I think Gen Z being the youth vote right now…and to see a candidate, regardless of their platform, so perfectly nailing every social media trend and inside joke, it’s just a new way to use social media as a platform,” Opalsky said. “It’s a way to influence the vote without really pushing policy.”

While the presence of social media in the political scene is evident more than ever, whether this directly leads to ballot box activity remains questionable.

“I don’t get my decision for who I will be voting for in this coming election, or any election from social media, but I definitely think that it’s just another component to a healthy curiosity about politics,” Kathryn Reese, a Torrey Pines High School graduate, said. “I always try to question everything that I see, and the social media posts that I see…while it may not personally change my opinion on something, it will give me inspiration for ‘I should research that policy more.’”

The algorithm feature on social media platforms may be playing a key role in constructing user’s political opinions (whether that be consciously or not). As similar content to past activities online are continuously recommended, it makes it unlikely for users to be exposed to opposite opinions unless they intend to.

“I do have a couple friends from school, and we have very different beliefs, and just from being next to them and seeing their social media versus mine, we’re just seeing two very different versions of the world,” Edwards said.

While it is apparent that social media is increasing its influence in the political realm, the extent to which it affects the results from a ballot box depends on one’s interpretation of the political content online, and where individuals draw the line. Nevertheless, it is obvious that social media is evolving as a new political platform.