Power Shift? Political Leadership and Social Media

Richard Davis is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Office of Civic Engagement at Brigham Young University, USA. He is the author of several books on the Internet and American politics including Twitter and Elections Around the World: Campaigning in 140 Characters or Less (2016), Covering the Courts in the Digital Age (2014), The Symbiotic Relationship Between the U.S. Supreme Court and the Press (2014), and may more. David Taras is Professor of Communication Studies and holds the Ralph Klein Chair in Media Studies at Mount Royal University, Canada. Before coming to Mount Royal, David taught at the University of Toronto, the University of Amsterdam and, most recently, the University of Calgary, where he served as the Ernest C. Manning Chair in Canadian Studies. While there, he received the Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence five times and was inducted into the Teaching Excellence Awards Hall of Fame in 2011. He was President of the Canadian Communications Association and served two terms on the Board of Governors of the University of Calgary. He received the Alberta Centennial Medal in 2005. A leading expert in the area of Canadian media policy and its relationship to Canadian identity and democracy, he is the author of The Newsmakers: The Media’s Influence on Canadian Politics (1990) and of Power & Betrayal in the Canadian Media (2001). He is co-author of The Last Word: Media Coverage of the Supreme Court of Canada (2006).

• Political Leadership and Social Media: An Introduction Part 1: Leaders and the New Instruments of Media Persuasion 2. The President Tweets the Press: President-Press Relations and the Politics of Media Degradation 3. Vulgar Eloquence in the Digital Age: A Case Study of Candidate Donald Trump’s Use of Twitter 4. "Delete Your Account"? Hillary Rodham Clinton Across Social Media Platforms in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election 5. The Visually Viral Prime Minister: Justin Trudeau, Selfies, and Instagram 6. Tweeting the Agenda: Policy Making and Agenda Setting by U.S. Congressional Leaders in the Age of Social Media Part 2: Twitter, Leaders, and Populism 7. Populism and Social Media Popularity: How Populist Communication Benefits Political Leaders on Facebook and Twitter 8. A Marriage of Twitter and Populism in the French Presidential Campaign? The Twitter-Discourse of Challengers Macron and Le Pen 9. Political Communication Patterns and Sentiments Across Time Part 3: Social Media and Grassroots Politics 10. ‘Twitter Was Like Magic!’: Strategic use of social media in contemporary feminist activism 11. #Unsettling Canada 150, One Tweet at a Time: How Indigenous Leaders use Twitter to Resist and Reframe Mainstream News in Canada 12. Fanning Flames of Discontent: A Case Study of Social Media, Populism, and Campaigning 13. Not A Leader! Theresa May’s Leadership Through the Lens of Internet Memes 14. Twitter and Student Leadership in South Africa: The Case of #FeesMustFall Conclusion

"Taras and Davis have put together a collection of scholars that represents a who’s who of researchers focused on the now ubiquitous role of social media in modern politics. The result is, as expected, successful. The essays in this volume provide a unique look into social media and political leadership. Has there been a foundational shift in the underpinnings guiding leadership, or does the song remain the same? Addressing multiple related topics, this collection grapples with that fundamental question." — Jason Gainous, Professor, co-author of Tweeting to Power"More scholarship has been available about uses of social media by political publics than by political leaders. That makes this volume a welcome addition. It presents a range of useful analyses national leadership in the US, Canada, Europe, and South Africa. It should be useful to scholars interested in a more complete picture of social media in politics as well as those interested in important comparative questions." — Bruce Bimber, Professor, Center for Information Technology & Society, and Department of Political Science, University of California - Santa Barbara"Taras and Davis have assembled some of the top scholars in the area of digital politics and leadership. This is a book provides an important foundation for anyone who wants to understand how modern leadership has changed in the Internet Age." — Kevin Wagner, Professor of Political Science, Florida Atlantic University"This book offers a timely and refreshingly diverse array of perspectives on social media and political elites. It’s a must-read for anyone interested in understanding leadership and strategic political communication and in today’s media environment." — Johanna Dunaway, Associate Professor, Texas A&M University