Chatting with digital natives

Abstract

The culture of communication has changed with the introduction of emergent communication technology. Tools such as Facebook, Twitter, and various blogs have changed the way we communicate. This study examines how politicians perceive and utilize these tools in their relationships with young citizens through the lens of dialogic theory. Through interviews, this dissertation reveals support for previous research indicating the lack of interactivity used by political communicators in their online communication. Results from the experimental phase indicated an overall lack of support for hypotheses raised. Future research calls for more in-depth study of dialogic theory and further examination of how emergent communication can provide insight into how to manage relationships between political campaigns and their young citizen constituents.