This chapter examines the phenomenon of political fandom and anti-fandom as expressed on Instagram during the 2024 European Parliament election campaign. It draws on a comparative quantitative content analysis of 1368 affectively charged posts concerning 12 political leaders in Italy, France, and Spain. Specifically, the analysis focuses on the affective dimensions of fandom and anti-fandom and on the factors that influence the probability that a post expresses either fandom or anti-fandom. The findings indicate that contextual and actor-related variables play a significant role. In a few words, the national context, the identity of the publisher, the leader’s position in government, and the leader’s gender all substantially influence the likelihood that a post contains elements of fandom or anti-fandom.
Political Fandom and Anti-fandom on Instagram During the 2024 European Parliament Election Campaign
Consonni S.
2026
Abstract
This chapter examines the phenomenon of political fandom and anti-fandom as expressed on Instagram during the 2024 European Parliament election campaign. It draws on a comparative quantitative content analysis of 1368 affectively charged posts concerning 12 political leaders in Italy, France, and Spain. Specifically, the analysis focuses on the affective dimensions of fandom and anti-fandom and on the factors that influence the probability that a post expresses either fandom or anti-fandom. The findings indicate that contextual and actor-related variables play a significant role. In a few words, the national context, the identity of the publisher, the leader’s position in government, and the leader’s gender all substantially influence the likelihood that a post contains elements of fandom or anti-fandom.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
