Social Capital and Politics

Generally speaking, when someone thinks about gaining capital, they would think of economics and having financial capital. But social capital would be a way to leverage oneself through relationships, networks, and social connections to get ahead in life. This can be accomplished in several ways, some through personable relationships and networking but also through online means with social media — creating a social network and gaining followers and connections based on your status online.

In recent years, social media has shifted to become a utility for political campaigns to leverage voters and connect with them on a different level from the traditional town hall visits and political debates. Through social media, followers can feel a stronger connection to these politicians in which they can seem to be closer to their constituents and less like celebrities. Particularly in this most recent presidential election, candidates have used social media as one of the primary resources to communicate with voters, especially younger ones.

Donald Trump has been someone recently that has gained a lot of social capital. Based on his activity through social media, he has gained so many more followers and noise in the news and it is helping to establish himself and gain popularity solely from social means.

In this case, Trump runs into several problems because often times he contradicts himself from social media to what he says in real life. Senator Bernie Sanders used this as an example when speaking on the Senate floor by printing out an enlarged tweet that Trump posted in which he said he would keep Obamacare, but in real life interviews and debates he outwardly said he promised to remove it.

In some cases like such, having a lot of social capital can be detrimental to being successful with networking and development. Trust is a major player when it comes to receiving media, and as Trump develops himself more through social media, he gains the threat of losing trust from his constituents and followers, (example with Sanders showing how he’s changed his opinions). But in other cases, having a lot of social capital helps him to gain more followers who agree and trust him. The problem here is that it can go either way.

The world is anxious to see how President Trump continues to establish himself online as the new president with his gained social capital.