How Spain’s far-right Vox created a winning social media strategy
The anti-immigration party has more followers on Instagram than any other political group in the country
https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/12/19/inenglish/1545234565_871352.html
Traffic to Vox’s website and social media platforms has soared following the recent elections in Andalusia, where the far-right party garnered 10.97% of the votes and 12 seats in the regional parliament.
There are three individuals between the ages of 23 and 26 who are largely responsible for the fact that Vox’s Twitter, Facebook and particularly Instagram accounts have started attracting huge numbers: a journalist, a sociologist and a broadcast studies undergraduate who were hired between 2016 and 2018 to pump up the party’s online profile. “There’s no longer any trust in the press,” says Manuel Mariscal, head of the party’s online accounts. “We are turning into our own communications channel.”
This is nothing new. It is a tried-and-tested populist strategy that proved effective in getting Donald Trump, Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro and Italy’s Matteo Salvini into power.