Has social media increased political engagement and increased political discourse in general? Has the political class moved away from control to engagement (to use the language of your textbook regarding marketers)? If so, has this increased engagement been for the better? If not, how and why are things basically the same or worse?

In some ways the readings and video clips for this week contradict each other. Our social media seem to both
alienate us and bring us together. Our world is described as both disengaged and engaged at the same time. How is
this possible? Last week we discussed some of the tensions caused by our new media. This week we explore the
dissonance caused by our disconnected and connected world as we explore the idea of engagement related to
social media. Your textbook discusses engagement from the point of view of consumers directly engaging brands
and companies. What this essentially means is that consumers have more of a voice with regards to the products
they consume.
The question for this week asks whether or not the democratizing of consumer opinion extends to political
discourse in a meaningful way. We know politicians are using social media to get their “message” across to voters.
However, is the political landscape being changed by social media? This question may initially seem unrelated to
the marketing focus of your textbook, but there are undeniable similarities between the consumer choices we
make and the politicians we choose to represent us locally and nationally. Or, is this similarity merely a superficial
understanding of how we select products and politicians?
Directions:
Using the assigned readings for this week AND YOUR OWN RESEARCH (must come from a library – online or
otherwise), write a short essay (3 pages and 3 sources minimum) in proper (APA or MLA) college format which
answers the following question:
• Has social media increased political engagement and increased political discourse in general? Has the
political class moved away from control to engagement (to use the language of your textbook regarding
marketers)? If so, has this increased engagement been for the better? If not, how and why are things
basically the same or worse? Remember to focus on social media with regards to your answers. Also, feel
free to focus on a recent (or not so recent) political event that helps you illustrate your point/s.

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