Social Media and the 2016 Election
http://www.npr.org/2016/11/08/500686320/did-social-media-ruin-election-2016
In “Did Social Media Ruin Election 2016?”, Sam Sanders analyzes the effect that social media has had on the 2016 election. It is clear that social media has played a much bigger part in the recent election than in past presidential elections. If one viewed posts all over Facebook and Twitter in the weeks leading up to the election, they would think that it was clear that Hillary Clinton would win the election. For example, many news articles trending on Facebook would have a viewpoint against Donald Trump. So how exactly did Donald Trump win the election when network effects would indicate otherwise?
One thing to keep in mind is that social media is largely used by millennials, which tend to be more liberal in nature. Therefore, trending news articles will also tend to be more liberal in nature. Furthermore, people tend to “follow” or “friend” people whose opinions align with their own. Because of this, people surround themselves with a network of people whose opinions are not necessarily a reflection of the majority of the country. Additionally, because it seemed obvious that Hillary Clinton would win, it is possible that people became complacent and confident in the results of the election.