EU executives on Twitter: appealing to popular legitimacy beliefs with public communication on social media

Abstract

Can European Union (EU) politicians effectively communicate with the public? The findings of this study reveal that high-level EU politicians, bureaucrats, and institutions are making progress in connecting with a broader audience. By analyzing over 70 thousand tweets from EU executives and studying interactions with 250 thousand Twitter followers, advanced machine learning techniques provide interesting insights into how EU leaders communicate with the public. Particularly noteworthy is their adoption of social media, especially Twitter, which has allowed them to simplify and streamline their political messages for regular delivery.

The first part of the study delves into the content of EU executives' tweets. Results show that they have moved beyond just explaining policy outcomes. Instead, these politicians and institutions enrich their communication by combining various messages, including taking positions on political matters and expressing evaluations. Additionally, EU executives on Twitter actively seek input from their audience, presenting messages that are clear and supported by multimedia content.

Shifting focus to the audience on Twitter, the second part of the study reveals that EU politicians, like Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen, primarily engage with an English-speaking and politically interested audience. This audience is particularly interested in positive messages and the executives' opinions. Interestingly, the study finds that the EU executives' use of everyday language to discuss their activities and political outputs does not effectively capture the attention of their Twitter audience.