THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND MILLENNIALS' POLITICAL CULTURE IN ELECTIONS

THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND MILLENNIALS' POLITICAL

CULTURE IN ELECTIONS

Introduction

The internet and social media have now become an inseparable part of the lives of

most United Statess, especially for citizens of the upper-middle economic class and the

younger generation categorized as the millennial generation. The massive use of the internet

and also internet-based social media has necessarily shifted the role of conventional media

or social platforms that have still had a major role in disseminating various information

including knowledge for citizens. Print-based or electronic mass media such as newspapers,

magazines, radio or television are increasingly abandoned by citizens for several reasons,

including that print media is no longer efficient in terms of price as well as content that is

not always updated like online-based media.

Social media is growing rapidly in line with the growth and ease of access to

information supported by the power of communication technology. Social media has 200

million active users. United States is one of the most active countries in social media. The

pattern of spreading messages that tend to be free has the intention to be immediately known

to the public as the goal of social media users, so it does not matter whether the information

disseminated is accurate according to the principles of good and correct reporting. The speed

of messages without reliable sources and in accordance with the facts tends to have a

negative impact on the dynamics of the country's political life.2 Social media in United

States has a tendency for political news through individual accounts, groups, and parties that

cannot be accounted for as a proper source of information. People who receive messages

also do not care about the accuracy or validity of information, the most important thing is to

fulfill their one-sided information needs according to their interests.

Political life in United States is prone to conflict between political groups due to the

abundance of messages, news and information that contain mutual criticism, prejudice,

subjectivism, sectarianism, communalism and sub-national spirit. While not everyone is

positive about social media as a source of information, it is important to consider its

criticisms and weaknesses. The stronger use of social media has marginalized mainstream

mass media in the competition for information dissemination related to politics and power

state. The power and popularity of social media, political parties, political institutions,

political groups, and various entities in society that are in contact with the government and

state power, seek to utilize social media as a supporting force to influence the audience.

3People have more trust in social media despite realizing that its accuracy is not guaranteed.

In situations of heated political competition between groups, people prefer social media

messages that contain negative criticism and accusations against political groups that are not

in line.

DISCUSSION

Political Culture

Culture is one of the important variables in the political system. The concept of a

political system must pay attention to the cultural variables in it so that the system is

appropriate and able to describe the basic values and characteristics of the people of the

region. Culture plays its role in shaping the collective behavior of a political community.

Every society has basic values and characteristics that vary from one another, so that people

also have political cultures that vary from one another. Political culture as a typical

orientation attitude of citizens comes from the roots of political culture which is a form of

synthesis Political culture is a very important aspect of the political system. This is because

the structure and function of political functions in the political system are highly dependent

on the surrounding political culture. 4 In the context of the United States political system,

political culture is positioned as one of the many types of environments, influencing and

suppressing the political system, even considered as the most intense and basic political

system.

Political culture is a contraction of one of the elements of United States political

development, namely achieving balance or harmony between political culture and the

existing or future political system. People are inseparable from talking about politics.

Figures are defined as relevant or important figures. Politicians are talented and mature

individuals who will guide their citizens to become more advanced and independent.5 The

figure is related to a person's ability to influence government decisions. Social media is one

form of mass communication in the era of new media or also called new media. New Media

is internet-based mass media or better known as online media. That internet media became a

form of mass communication and was recorded in early 1996. 6 Social media is very

important as a means of an effective political communication process, especially in election

campaigns that can be an intermediary between political figures and their voters. historical

events that have crystallized in people's lives and are passed down through generations in

the form of an order of values and norms of behavior. In United States, these are basic

values that, although different, do not contradict each other. They originate from the values

of indigenous peoples throughout United States, which are then summarized and unified in

Pancasila as the foundation of the state. Thus the roots of the culture as a whole can be seen

in Pancasila. Each precept in Pancasila contains values that have deep meaning.

The basic principles (values) in Pancasila are the principle of Godhead which is the

most important element of the elements of the United States state of law, the principle of

deliberation, social justice and laws that are subject to national interests and United States

unity that protect all United States blood spilled, the principle of social justice, and the last

principle of the United States state of law is an element where the law serves the interests of

one and sovereign United States that protects all United States blood spilled. The definition

of political parties etymologically according to Jimly Assiddiqie comes from the word party

which means part or group. 7 The word party refers to a group as a grouping of people based

on certain similarities such as goals, ideology, religion, or even interests. The grouping is in

the form of an organization in general, which can be distinguished according to its area of

activity, such as community organizations, religious organizations, youth organizations, and

political organizations. In its development, the word party is more associated with political

organizations, namely community organizations engaged in politics.

According to Miriam Budiardjo "A political party is an organized group whose

members share the same orientation, values and ideals. The goal in this sense is to gain

political power or seize political positions constitutionally to implement public policies".

According to Law No. 2 of 2011 concerning Political Parties, "Political Parties are

organizations that are national in nature and are formed by a group of United States citizens

voluntarily on the basis of a common will and ideals to fight for and defend the political

interests of members, society, nation and state, as well as the political interests of the

community, nation and state" maintaining the integrity of the Unitary State of the Republic

of United States based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of United

States.

The definition of political parties based on the above understanding, political culture

is the behavior of society in everyday political life based on socially accepted values and

norms. Kantaprawira put forward another point of view "Political culture is human

perception, and its attitude towards various political issues and political events is also

included in the structure of political activities. A narrow political culture is characterized by

a low level of political participation. This is due to cognitive factors, such as the low level of

public education, members of the public who are interested in the topic of political culture,

pay attention, and may have awareness of the entire system (especially the output), but pay

attention to that aspect. is the input of political participants And awareness can be said to be

zero, and the political culture of the participant The characteristic of (participant political

culture) is that a person considers himself or others as active members in political life, so

that they realize their respective rights and obligations, and can achieve peace. Use rights

and responsibilities, but in a society there is often one type of political culture, for example

in a participant political culture there can still be found individuals who have no interest in

broad political goals. Be aware of the reality of the political culture that lives in that society.

Political culture has several types. The following describes several types of political

culture. A narrow political culture is characterized by a low level of political participation.

This is due to cognitive factors, such as the low level of public education, members of the

public who are interested in the topic of political culture, pay attention, and may have

awareness of the entire system (especially the output), but pay attention to that aspect. is the

input of political participants And awareness can be said to be zero, and the political culture

of the participant The characteristic of (participant political culture) is that a person

considers himself or others as active members in political life, so that he realizes his rights

and obligations (obligations) respectively, and can achieve peace.10 Use rights and

responsibilities.

However, in a society, one type of political culture is often found, for example in a

participatory political culture, individuals who have no interest in broad political goals can

still be found. Aware of the reality of political culture that lives in society, Almond

concluded that there is a mixed political culture. According to him, this culture is common

in societies that continue to experience rapid development and dynamic change. Systems can

be changed, and cultural and political structures are always incompatible. Narrow political

political culture is a political culture with a very low degree of political participation. If the

frequency of orientation to the four defining dimensions of a society's political culture is

close to zero or does not pay attention to the four dimensions at all, it can be said to be

narrow och. This political culture is usually found in African or rural tribal societies in

United States. In these societies, there are no specific political roles. The chief, the village

head, the Kiai or the Shaman, usually outlines all roles, whether political, economic or

religious.

Subject political culture, which is the political culture of a society that is relatively

socially and economically advanced but still passive. If people in general have a high

inclination towards the knowledge goals and outputs of the political system, or have a

certain understanding of the policies formulated by the government, then it can be said that

the political culture of society is a theme. However, what is actually concerned is not the

frequency of government orientation in the structure and role of the decision-making

process. The subject knows the authority of the government and effectively demonstrates it

to that authority. People's attitudes towards the existing political system are expressed

through pride or even disgust. In essence, in the subject's political culture, there is sufficient

understanding of the political system in general and the government's policy-making

process.

Political culture is inseparable from political awareness. Political awareness is

various forms of knowledge, directions and values that form personal political opinions in

accordance with the relationship between individuals and political power. Political

awareness is an awareness of civil rights and obligations. The level of political awareness is

interpreted as a sign that citizens have a concern for national status or development issues. 12

Political awareness is an internal process that shows that every citizen is aware of the

urgency of state affairs in the life of society and the nation. Political awareness or belief in

national life is comprehensive and complex, so without the active support of all citizens,

many national tasks are neglected.

Social Media

Social media is one form of mass communication in the era of new media or also

called new media. New Media is internet-based mass media, or more commonly online

media. This internet media then became one of the forms of mass communication tools and

was recorded in early 1996. In the past, mass communication tools in the old paradigm were

mostly aimed at traditional media, such as television, newspapers, magazines, tabloids,

books, radio, movies, and cassettes (CDs).

Whereas in the new paradigm, mass communication tools are newspapers, television,

radio, magazines and the internet. Why is social media included in mass communication?

Obviously, the foundation of social media is the development of internet media. Judging

from its understanding, mass communication is a process of building shared meaning

between the mass media and the media. Audiences and mass media are tools or media or

channels for conveying information. This shows that social media is one of the mass media

and information sources that can be accessed by many people.

Social media is inseparable from the development of the internet, on the internet

web-based mass media is one of the sources of information and has been widely used by the

public. Basically, social media is the latest development of new Internet-based web

development technology, which makes it easy to communicate, participate, and share to

form online networks, thus allowing them to spread their own content. In addition,

according to (Zarella 2010: 51), social networking media are sites where people

communicate with friends in the real world and the virtual world. Nowadays, most people

are more likely to be long-distance communication opponents than social media. This is

certainly very convenient, especially for time efficiency and practice of all questions.

Social media has the function of user-generated content (UGC) generated by users

and even editors such as mass media organizations. In addition, users will easily participate,

share and create messages. There are several social media sites that are popular today,

including: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Line, Whatsapp, BBM, etc. 14 The social media

boom in United States began with the widespread use of the internet in United States in

1996, and people began to seek knowledge and information through internet media. With the

development of the era of mass media services on the internet, there are also many services,

one of which is the existence of social media. Another factor that influences the rapid use of

social media is the existence of Android or smart phones, where ordinary cell phones

without the Playstore function cannot download various social media applications. The use

of the internet is increasing, so the provision of internet-based cellphones is also increasing

so that it is more convenient and practical.

Social Media And Political Culture

The function of social media changes from time to time, so it is not always dynamic

and follows the needs of the times and users (e.g. the community or the users themselves).

Initially, social media was designed to exchange information and communicate quickly and

easily. But nowadays, there are not only a few social media that implement these features,

which were originally a means of exchanging information with close friends, but nowadays,

the boundaries or limits of social media have changed. For example, Facebook, Twitter, and

Instagram social media users have followers or people with a large number of followers.

Although Facebook and some other social media friends or account followers do not have a

policy of more than 100 people, it is currently less due to more needs and interests.15 This

means that it is no longer solely a media provider of information but there are other interests,

namely business, politics and others that exist on social media.

Nowadays, there are only a few ordinary people who try to increase their followers

in various ways, so that they become the center of attention and have many fans. Among the

many social media, Instagram has indeed become the most widely used social media for

business and intranet, also appearing on Instagram.Since then, a new term has emerged for

this phenomenon, namely Instagram celebrities or celebrities who think they are artists. or

Artists who are currently popular or famous in the television media, newspapers or

magazines, but are famous for showing interesting photos, videos or programs.

Politics is another phenomenon, with political movements and political discussions

emerging on social media. Since the 2014 presidential election, political movements and

political debates have been seen on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Many accounts

intentionally provide content containing political campaigns and more in-depth political

information. Finally, there is the word "buzzer" on social media. "Buzzer" comes from the

English word meaning ringtone or alarm. As far as buzzers are concerned, it is defined as a

tool used to put out a message or announce something to gather people. In the context of

social media, buzzers will function as much as possible and publish certain posts, the goal is

for the public to quickly understand it, or as a product promotion, usually buzzers, because it

will cause some problems. social media.

Social media is a communication channel for political actors to communicate with

supporters and voters. The form of communication is to build public opinion while

mobilizing a lot of political support. The use of social media also increases political

communication networks, political relations, and public participation in elections. Social

media is further described as finding an ideal means and base of information for the public

about political policies and positions, as well as building community support for politicians

campaigning. Many studies around the world use social media to connect with voters and

shape political discussions in direct dialog with the public, creating a space for dialog

between politicians and the public, and attracting young voters/voters. More important for

politicians.

Media Social As Flatform Choice For Political Communication

The political event through the West Java regional election is basically inseparable

from national political stakes. This is based on the fact that West Java is the largest vote

bank in national political stakes, especially in the Presidential Election. With a population

percentage of 18% of the total national population, West Java has become a fierce political

battleground since direct elections were introduced. Second, West Java based on the results

of the 2014 Presidential Election placed the opposition group as the winner of the

contestation so that the national opposition camp wants to maintain that position and on the

other hand the incumbent camp wants to win the majority of votes in this area to secure its

position as the winner in the 2019 political contestation. The context of the West Java

regional election through political communication through social media is then considered

by some contestants as a step in coloring changes in the national political system in the

future through a change in national leadership if one of the candidate pairs can win the

contestation. This also confirms the opinion that "political communication refers to any

exchange of symbols or messages that to a significant extent have been shaped by or have

consequences for the political system". Another opinion considers that political

communication is inseparable from the need for a strategy which is an overall conditional

decision at this time about the actions that will be carried out in order to achieve political

goals in the future.

In the 2018 West Java regional election, candidates and also volunteers affiliated

with pairs of regional head candidates all used Facebook and WhatsApp social media in

conducting their political campaigns. Based on observations made by researchers, pair

number 1 (Ridwan Kamil and Uu Ruzhanul Ulum) for example uses a Facebook account

with the name Relawan Jabar Juara. Pair number 2 (Hasanuddin and Anton Charliyan)

through the Hasanah Volunteer Facebook account. Pair number 3 (Sudrajat and Ahmad

Syaikhu) with the facebook account Supporters Sudaradjat Syaiku-Asyik and Pair number 4

(Deddy Mizwar and Dedi Mulyadi) with the facebook account Support 2 DM P4T

GULIP4T. The content on the Facebook social media accounts above contains the visions

and missions of the candidate pairs, programs, profiles and daily activities carried out by the

candidate pairs during the campaign period and outside the campaign period. Related to the

technical implementation of elections, the content also contains information about the

stages, programs and schedules for the implementation of elections and the recruitment of

election organizers. In addition, the account content also contains regulations and techniques

for voting, counting and recapitulation of elections.17 However, as part of a political

campaign, the general and dominant content displayed is is the vision-mission, programs

and policies that will be carried out by the candidate pair if they will later answer as head

and deputy head of the region.

Attitudes And Beliefs Towards Social Media Content

Political attitude is a relationship or link between beliefs that have been attached and

encourage a person to respond to an object or political situation in a certain way. Public

attitudes and behavior are influenced by past historical processes and events and are a

dynamic continuum. Political events or events in general as well as those that happen to

individuals or groups of people, both concerning the political system or political instability,

political promises from prospective leaders or candidates for people's representatives that are

never kept can affect people's political behavior. The West Java regional election is

interesting to study because the incumbent governor is considered one of the most successful

regional heads in United States. The picture of the incumbent's brilliant achievements has

always been used as a barometer for the community to elect regional heads in 2018.

The candidates come from different professions and backgrounds. However, almost

all of them can be categorized as the nation's best cadres who have a high spirit of leadership

and common progress. Various attitudes were displayed by informants in this study. The

majority of informants saw that social media content related to the election campaign saw

that not all of the content displayed was positive so it was not worth forwarding to friends or

audiences.18 Therefore, a process of filtering and scrutinizing the content is needed. The

millennial generation in responding to existing social media content sees that many

campaign themes contain positive things that can be taken from the social media content

displayed.19 Posting the profiles of candidate pairs and their performance so far provides

new knowledge for the general public about whether a candidate is worthy of being elected

as a regional head. This kind of theme is important for novice voters who do not know much

about the background and performance of previous candidate pairs. In content like this,

some informants said that it is not uncommon for them to give feedback by responding like

or sharing content such as on their Facebook or WhatsApp. 20 On the other hand, informants

who volunteer for candidate pairs also make modifications to content like this, such as

improving the appearance of images so that they are better seen by followers or friends of

the volunteers.

Conclusions

Political culture is a pattern of behavior in society in the life of the nation, national

government, government politics, laws, customs and norms, and is a culture that must be

obeyed by all members of society every day. Political culture can also be interpreted as a

social shared value system, which has the awareness to participate in collective decision-

making and public policy formulation of the whole society. Social media is a

communication channel for political actors to communicate with supporters and voters. The

form of communication is to build public opinion while mobilizing a lot of political support.

The use of social media also increases political communication networks, political

relationships and public participation in elections.

The West Java election has been held and the pair Ridwan Kamil and Uu Ruzhanul

Ulum have been elected Governor and Deputy Governor for the period 2018-2023. The

victory was based on many factors and one of them is inseparable from the role of political

communication through the use of social media. Other couples also gained electoral benefits

in the use of social media by taking the right theme in the context of contemporary national

politics. The significant vote acquisition of Sudrajat and Syaikhu pairs with low electability

at the beginning of the contestation stage proved to be able to rank second in the final vote

count. This confirms D. McQuail's opinion on the importance of mass media including

social media as the main instrument in political communication. The intense use of social

media among the millennial generation on the other hand is in line with their type of

political culture and the political culture of United States society in general. The millennial

generation with the characteristics of a dominant apathetic or parochial political culture is

not necessarily in line with their political behavior patterns in this election contestation.

Millennials with intense use of social media tend to participate politically by utilizing social

media as a catalyst for political participation.