| Summary: | This study examines discussions about the Voice to Parliament referendum on Twitter between March and May 2023. Analysis of 246,000 tweets sent by 32,453 unique accounts reveals a dominant presence of the Yes campaign, with five times greater tweet volume than the No campaign. The hyperpolarised (Bruns, 2023) discourse on Twitter is marked by misinformation and conspiracy theories stemming from Vote No campaigners and further amplified by attempts to criticise and fact-check it from the Vote Yes camp. Politicians and media outlets play a pivotal role in shaping this discourse, with platforms like Twitter both reinforcing and evolving the ‘racial division’ and ‘hidden agenda’ narratives these elite actors promote. Specifically, Sky News Australia emerges as a significant influencer, amplified by both sides. The No campaign displays a significantly greater proportion of suspicious accounts. An influx of newly created pseudonymous accounts with fabricated or no profile information promote Vote No arguments, engage in trolling and sharing discriminatory content, and spread conspiratorial narratives. We find little evidence of social bots participating in the online discussions. Overall, our findings reveal a media ecosystem fraught with confusion, conspiratorial sensemaking, and strategic media manipulation. This study underscores the challenges of fostering meaningful deliberation in such an environment, highlighting the pitfalls of the current media and political landscape for Australia's liberal democracy, particularly in matters concerning First Nations representation.
|
|---|