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Implications of TikTok's algorithm and user interaction on political preferences
Rejchrtová, Karina ; Shavit, Anna (advisor) ; Rosenfeldová, Jana (referee)
In today's digital age, social media is a pivotal tool for political campaigns. With the growing importance of social media in politics, it is essential to understand how the algorithms of these platforms can influence voter preferences. In particular, platforms like TikTok attract younger voters, which political parties use to spread their messages. The topic of examining the effects of social media algorithms on political campaigns is now very important, especially considering how algorithms can favor certain types of content and thus influence voting behavior. Current research of this topic so far has shown that although social media algorithms are designed to increase user interaction, they can have side effects such as polarizing opinions or unfair representation. Eli Pariser in the book "The Filter Bubble" pointed out the potential danger of such algorithms in creating closed information bubbles. Tarleton Gillespie in the book "Custodians of the Internet" then addresses the role of platforms in moderating content and deciding what goes viral. In the context of the upcoming European elections in 2023, I will focus on the issue of the manifestation of the TikTok algorithm and user interaction on political preferences. The thesis will examine what political content is preferred on TikTok,...
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Receiving information about politics and public events in filter bubbles in the Facebook environment
Halaštová, Eliška ; Císař, Ondřej (advisor) ; Mitrenga, David (referee)
This thesis describes the acceptance of information about politics and public life in filtered bubbles through Facebook. It tries to show the new phenomenon of filtered bubbles, which may have an impact on the quality of the information awareness of the general citizenry. Considering that theories of representative democracy usually describe well-informed citizens as one of the conditions of a functional democracy, the thesis considers whether or not informational isolation caused by the bubbles may have an impact on the quality of democracy in a given country. It goes on to describe how the Facebook algorithm helps to informationally isolate users in two distinct groups - fans and opponents of the Czech Prime Minister, Andrej Babiš. It shows the difference in the reception of information in different informational bubbles. A content analysis of posts in both Facebook groups, paired with an analysis of interviews with participants, shows that opinion groups differ in their reception of information, meaning that they also differ in the diversity of information received, the quality of info, the trust in public service media and a willingness to discuss. Conversely, common themes in reception of information include a growth in the importance of Facebook as a media source, a transition from active searches for...
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