My Voter, My Party, and Me: American and German Parliamentarians on Facebook

Abstract

This study compares the political communication of American and German politicians on Facebook by referring to the framework of political communication systems. We analyzed the Facebook profiles and communication of all the members of the 17th German Bundestag and the 112th U.S. Congress. Our results reveal differences between American and German politicians in reference to their general use of Facebook, their voter relationship management on Facebook, and the personalization of their presentation. Because these differences can be interpreted against the background of the countries’ political communication systems, we conclude that structural differences influence how new communication technologies are adopted.