​Political Social Media Influencers: Building a Shared Research Agenda

Political communication has always had intermediaries. From journalists to campaign communications directors to opinion leaders, political ideas have flowed through a network of actors on their way to the wider public. Now some of these intermediaries have a ring light, a phone, and an online audience that trusts them more than they trust the news. We refer to these online personalities, who build a following and at least sometimes share political content, as political social media influencers (PSMI). PSMI shape news and information consumption, opinion formation, and electoral campaigns. They also intervene in issue politics and in formal political processes, making them consequential for a wide range of political outcomes.

Research on PSMI is growing quickly but remains fragmented. Scholars use a range of terms, theories, and methods, with empirical studies often focusing on a single-country or single-platform. Notably, the Global South is substantially underrepresented in current literature, despite the increasingly important role of PSMI beyond the North Atlantic. We also still know surprisingly little about how PSMI affect political knowledge, political efficacy, and political trust.

As research into PSMIs begins to mature, the preconference offers a moment to consider how and in what direction the field should evolve. Political communication scholars might consider PSMI in terms of digital opinion leadership; journalism studies might consider the news influencer and their boundary work; influencer studies and cultural communication might delve into parasocial relationships and the influencer industry; marketing scholars might focus on influencers as promotional vehicles; while others might be interested in emerging virtual influencers and use of AI; to name just a few. What is clear, is that in the context of the erosion of legacy news media, changing social status of political parties, the use of influencer networks in propaganda and foreign influence campaigns, and declining trust in existing political institutions and elites, PSMI have a potentially major role to play.

This pre-conference brings together researchers from around the world and across theoretical and methodological traditions to exchange what we know so far, what we need to know next, and what tools and approaches we can share to enable cross-national comparison and contextually situated understandings of influencers roles and impacts. Attendees also benefit from a publication opportunity: a Special Issue of the International Journal of Communication will be produced from a selection of accepted preconference presenters