Friending the Prime Minister – The Culture and Use of Political Interaction on Social Media

INVITATION TO HEX DIGITAL CULTURES SEMINAR SERIES:

WITH: Lisbeth Klastrup who works as Associate Professor at the IT-University of Copenhagen, where she is affiliated with the Digital Culture and Communication and Media Research Groups.  She has studied the culture and use of online worlds and social media format since 1999, and is currently working on a book on social network media.

LECTURE: What happens when people start friending their prime minister and politicians wash all their dirty laundry in front of a curious social media audience? In recent years, politicians and political parties have started to use social media extensively as part of their political campaigning in relation to local and national elections for parliament.  What does “political life” in social media look like currently and historically, and how do users in fact engage with politics and politicians? Is there such a thing as a “political culture” in the social media sphere and if so, what does it look like? This lecture will discuss these questions and more, primarily based on the study of use of social media in Danish election campaigns from 2005 to 2011.

LAB: In the lab, we will follow up on the lecture, first by short group work where you discuss your own use of social media in a political context, and then followed by joint discussion and commentary.

WHEN? 4 October, 13.15–16.00 13.15-14.45 Lecture + Q & A ** short break ** 15.00-16.00 Exercises in the computer lab

WHERE? Department of Arts and Cultural Sciences, Lund. Room 201, 1st floor, in Kulturanatomen at Biskopsgatan 7.

HOW: Drop in. It is not mandatory to announce your participation ahead of time, but it is much appreciated! Please email: jessica.enevold@kultur.lu.se

Welcome!