Example 1: Donation Instagram post | Post displaying the message: “Thank you for donating to UN Refugee Agency. Your donation will help displaced Afghans in need” | User hidden | |
Example 2: Influencer Tik Tok meme | Influencer shows preference for left-wing parties in 10-second video with a comedic viral audio-track (“You Get a Cupcake”) | Norwegian reality TV star/influencer | TikTok |
Example 3: Petition campaign video | 30-second video post in which a Sámi artist explains, in English, that mining companies are polluting fjords in northern Norway. Includes a call to sign and share a petition. | User hidden | |
Example 4: Vaccine-sceptic meme | Cartoon-style meme depicting the year 2030 with a man receiving his twentieth Covid-19 vaccine from a doctor who says, “Just one more, trust us, we’re the government” | User hidden | |
Example 5: Manipulated advert satire + comment thread | Manipulated image of a campaign advertisement from a political party, the post is marked humour; plus the top-20 comments attached | Users hidden | |
Example 6: #BlackOutTuesday | Black square posted to Instagram along with “#BlackOutTuesday”, part of a popular campaign connected to the Black Lives Matter movement | David Beckham | |
Example 7: Politician Facebook post | Facebook post with link to news story about patient neglect in hospitals, contributor claims this is due to excessive funding for foreign aid and climate policy | Leader of right-wing political party in Norway | |
Example 8: Tweet against JK Rowling | Tweet calls for a boycott of all Harry Potter merchandise, accusing JK Rowling of hateful behaviour | User hidden | |
Example 9: “I voted” profile frame | Facebook profile picture with “I voted MDG” (Green party) | User hidden | |
Example 10: Ukraine profile frame | Facebook profile picture with Ukraine flag frame (Only shown to 2022 groups; 3 of 7) | User hidden |
1 | 1 | 22 | Female | Town, Mid | Undergraduate student, biotechnology | Medium |
2 | 24 | Male | City, East | Master’s student, management | Low | |
2 | 3 | 22 | Female | City, Mid | Graphic design intern | Low |
4 | 21 | Female | Town, Mid | Administrative assistant | Low | |
5 | 20 | Male | City, North | Chemical process apprentice | Medium | |
3 | 6 | 19 | Male | Village, Mid | Call centre employee | High |
7 | 23 | Female | City, North | Master’s student, media studies | High | |
8 | 20 | Female | Village, East | Undergraduate student, political science | High | |
4 | 9 | 24 | Male | Village, West | Master’s student, political science | High |
10 | 18 | Male | City, East | High school student | High | |
11 | 22 | Male | Village, South | Master’s student, physics | High | |
5 | 12 | 20 | Female | Town, Mid | Undergraduate student, game design | Medium |
13 | 20 | Male | Town, West | Undergraduate student, game design | Low | |
6 | 14 | 25 | Female | Town, East | Bartender | Medium |
15 | 20 | Female | City, East | Undergraduate student, architecture | Low | |
16 | 21 | Male | City, East | Undergraduate student, physics | Medium | |
17 | 25 | Female | Village, West | Undergraduate student, geology | Low | |
7 | 18 | 24 | Female | Town, North | Master’s student, organisational studies | High |
19 | 24 | Female | Town, North | Undergraduate student, drama | Low | |
20 | 23 | Male | City, West | Master’s studies, European studies | Medium |
Area of interest |
Questions asked (sometimes the conversation flowed in such a way that certain questions needed not be asked) |
Warming up |
Tell us a bit about yourselves: How old are you, which city do you live in, what do you study/work with? Do any of you know one another from before today? (And if so, how?) |
Social media |
Talk a little about your social media habits: What social media platforms do you use? How do you use them? Have you ever posted something online and regretted it? Do you think using social media has had an impact on who you are as a person? |
Identity |
Participants did a ranking task, where they ordered items in terms of how important they were for their own self-image. Items included political views, religious beliefs, gender, hobbies, talents and abilities, etc. |
Experiences with politics |
What is your relationship to news? Do you take in news (absolutely fine if not)? What do you think of when you hear the word “politics”? (after discussing their takes, encourage to keep broad notion of “the political” in mind) Would you say you are interested in politics? (What makes you say yes/no?) How has your relationship to politics changed over time? Do you ever “act political” / participate in politics? Please raise your hand if you consider yourself to be (each raise-hands round was followed by discussion): “on the left side”, “on the right side”, “a feminist”, “conservative”, “a socialist”, “an activist”, “woke” What does being a “good citizen” mean, to you? (and “bad” citizen?) |
Social media and politics |
Does social media play a role in your relationship to politics? How often would you say you see political content on social media? And what kind of political content, from what kind of users? How do you feel about people posting about politics on social media? Are there better and worse ways to do it? Do you show your political views on social media? If yes, how? If no, why not? |
Photo-elicitation examples |
Moderator introduces the PPT with the following, and prompts throughout: We will show the examples in the PPT and discuss them in different ways Have you seen something like this before? What is your impression? E.g., How would you interpret/respond if an influencer, politician, friend, acquaintance, etc. shares this? Could you “react” using any technological functions (like, save, etc.)? |
Finishing up |
Do you have anything you feel like saying that we did not come across? Do you have any questions? Thank you so much for your time. Please feel free to contact me anytime if there is something you would like to know or add. |