No 53 (2023): Digital communication in electoral campaigns.

In this issue of our journal (53) you will find interesting research on digital political communication, such as the one carried out by Dr. Patricia Andrade, from the Universidad Veracruzana, focusing on the discourses on COVID-19 on Twitter. Within the framework of this crisis, the author confirms that the dissemination of information via Twitter also follows hegemonic communication patterns and reproduces generally accepted social practices according to the traditional flow that gives a major role to the media and its journalists. Carlos A. Ballesteros-Herencia, from the University of Valladolid, also presents an analysis of the evolution of the engagement of Spanish political parties during election campaigns. The concept of engagement has become central to the analysis of social media activity and, in particular, Ballesteros-Herencia applies it to user interactions with the Facebook pages of the main Spanish political parties. And it is precisely because any social media strategy seeks high levels of engagement, beyond reach. The level of digital engagement of the communities of followers articulated in the digital sphere gives us clues about the type of militant that supports each party and even anticipates possible electoral results. On the other hand, the consultant Germán Pérez Soberón tackles the communicative behaviour of Spanish politicians on Twitter with a comparison of their Twitter accounts. It is worth highlighting the fact that the greater presence on Twitter is related to the greater degree of responsibility of the politician. The last article in this set of research focused on social networks is presented by Laura Cervi, from the Autonomous University of Barcelona. In this case, Cervi focuses on one of the networks that has been growing most in recent times, especially among the Z generation, and about which there is still much to be written: TikTok. The importation of forms typical of the influencer world and the concept of politainment become fundamental to understanding the cultural environment of this social network.

Apart from digital sphere, we present an article by Professor Leyre Burguera Ameave, from the UNED, on the regulatory framework for electoral debates in Spain. And Professors Montabes Pereira (University of Granada), Trujillo (Pablo de Olavide University) and Alarcón González (University of Granada) publish one of the first academic analyses of the results of the Spanish municipal elections of 2023. According to these authors, the 28 May elections consolidated the dynamics of watertight ideological blocs in Spain.Finally, this issue includes an article by Professor Aquiles Chihu, from the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Iztapalapa, on "las mañaneras", the singular communicative format that has marked AMLO's presidency. Specifically, Chihu uses the concept of "symbolic framing" to address the Mexican president's political discourse in the political ritual he carried out every morning.

The guest consultant in this issue is Francisco José Viudes, who specialises in the application of artificial intelligence (AI) to digital communication. For Viudes, artificial intelligence is clearly useful for segmentation and targeting in political campaigns. And in our Electoral Periscope section, an analysis of the presidential elections in Paraguay, by author Erica Imbrogiano Pereira.