2021 is the super election year. A total of six state elections and the federal election in September are pending. This Sunday the elections in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland Palatinate start – the first elections in Germany since the beginning of the corona pandemic. Election campaign is therefore a Balancing act between analog and digital.
For five years now, the smartphone has been the most important end device with which we have used the Internet. In other words, there is already a mixture of the virtual and the real world. Election campaigns must therefore be thought of as fully integrated.
Martin Fuchs, policy and strategy advisor
Private–Election campaign: now with hybrid methods
The classic election campaign on the street or house calls have long ceased to be the only means by which parties fight for votes – it is currently a little more difficult anyway. This year, many parties are therefore increasingly relying on other election campaign classics, for example the number of posters and flyers has increased.
In addition to these analogue campaign tools, the young candidates in particular are trying to reach the population via digital media. Many use Instagram or Facebook, for example, and some of the election programs were created through social media surveys, among other things.
On the one hand, there will always be more and better information for those interested in politics. At the same time, there are more and more channels for those who are not politically interested to get out of the communication process.
Andreas Jungherr, professor of communication science
University of Konstanz–Digitization and Democracy
Digitization also affects the specieshow it is communicated in a political context. Critics fear the digital media are a danger to democracy. Buzzwords like election manipulation, fake news and hate speech fall into this context. At the same time, there are voices who claim that thanks to digitization, politics will finally be closer to the people and more direct.
Talk about the opportunities and risks of the digital election campaign detektor.fm-Moderator Marie Jainta with Martin Fuchs, Political and strategy consultant, journalist and lecturer for social media and politics. She also speaks with Andreas Jungherr. He is professor of communication science with a focus on digitization and the public at the University of Jena.
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