 | Social Media and Politics in Central and Eastern Europe Subjects: Area Studies; Humanities; Politics & International Relations; Central Asian Russian & Eastern European Studies; Politics & the Media; Media & Film Studies; European Politics; Eastern European Politics; Political Communication; Media & Communications; Social media are increasingly revolutionising the ways in which political communication works, and their importance for engaging citizens in politics and public affairs is well understood by political actors. This book surveys current developments in social media and politics in a range of Central and Eastern European countries, including Ukraine and Russia. It explores the process of adoption of social media by politicians, journalists and civic activists, examines the impact of the different social and cultural backgrounds of the countries studied, and discusses specific political situations, such as the 2012 protests in Moscow and the 2014 EuroMaidan events in Ukraine, where social media played an important role. The book concludes by addressing how the relationship between social media and politics is likely to develop and how it might affect the still relatively new democracies in the region. Paweł Surowiec is Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Media and Communication at Bournemouth University, UK. |
