The London School of Economics and Political Science ‘Sharing’ the Digital Public Sphere? Facebook and the Politics of Immigration Cassian Osborne-Carey A thesis submitted to the Department of Sociology at the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. London, September 2018 1 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 83,527 words 2 Abstract This project critically examines 'Sharing' on Facebook, that which is central to the operation of the site and has been celebrated as a democratic panacea. By exploring the spatial, deliberative and informational features of sharing I attempt to locate the effective operation of a heralded Digital Public Sphere. Drawing upon data gathered on the Facebook Pages of three major British political parties between January 2015 and May 2016, I examine the space, speech and news manifested by an assemblage of actors sharing immigration, a particularly contentious topic dominating recent British politics. Mapping the relations between platform, users, parties and media actors intertwined across the substance and form of the issue, I reveal how tension between the ideological and economic demands of the platform interacts with user desire and a wider political climate to directly scupper the progressive, deliberative ideals celebrated in the branding of sharing. Through formal and substantive analysis of the 'articulation' of immigration, I show how the platform becomes fertile ground for the growth of right-wing populism. However, by taking a relational approach I problematise the portrayal of social media as a Deus ex Machina that conveniently explains unforeseen political events. I argue that narratives rooted in technological determinism neglect the sociotechnical qualities of contemporary life, where human and non-human agency are entangled in the production of consequences that blur the online/offline divide. Taking up agonistic critiques of ‘post-democracy’, I draw from the data a context that reflects a crisis in democratic representation - one not determined by technological change but in constant creative and productive engagement with it. Bridging empirical data with social and political theory reveals why practice emerges in ways that challenge the idealised branding of connected publics, yet at the same time unsettle attempts to reductively assign responsibility for their perceived failures. 3 Acknowledgments I would like to thank Professor Mike Savage and Professor Suki Ali for their guidance during this project. I would also like to thank the committed educators at Pupil Referral Units and the teachers on my Access to Higher Education course. 4 Table of Contents Declaration .................................................................................................................................... 2 Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................... 4 Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................... 5 List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ 6 1. Introduction: ‘Sharing’ the ‘Digital Public Sphere’ ................................................................ 8 2. Practicing ‘Digital’ Sociology ............................................................................................... 38 3. Party Pages and the Politics of the Artefact ....................................................................... 70 4. Digital Speech and Democratic Deliberation .................................................................... 116 5. Issue-Networks and Aesthetics ......................................................................................... 162 6. Whither the Digital Public Sphere? ................................................................................... 208 Appendix 1 – Primary Data Sources .......................................................................................... 240 Appendix 2 – Data Collection Application ................................................................................ 240 Appendix 3 - Party Post Themes ............................................................................................... 241 Appendix 4 – Stock Issues ......................................................................................................... 244 Appendix 5 – Hyperlink Themes ............................................................................................... 247 Appendix 6 – Comment & Discussion Posts ............................................................................. 250 References ................................................................................................................................ 257 5 List of Figures Figure 2.1 Netvizz Workflow - Source: Rieder, 2015 .................................................................. 47 Figure 2.2 Netvizz Example ......................................................................................................... 47 Figure 2.3 Post-Comment Window in days - 2015 ..................................................................... 50 Figure 2.4 Google Trends Immigration Searches over Time ....................................................... 52 Figure 2.5 No. of Immigration Headlines over Time 2015 .......................................................... 52 Figure 2.6 Percentage of people citing Immigration as Primary Issue ....................................... 53 Figure 2.7 Herring’s (2010) ‘Web Content Analysis’ ................................................................... 57 Figure 2.8 Pages and the Artefact ............................................................................................... 58 Figure 2.9 Speech and Deliberation ............................................................................................ 61 Figure 2.10 Issue-Networks and Aesthetics ................................................................................ 64 Figure 3.2 Party Facebook Pages ................................................................................................ 74 Figure 3.3 No. of Posts per Month .............................................................................................. 76 Figure 3.4 Post Length over Time in Words ................................................................................ 77 Figure 3.5 Post Modes ............................................................................................................... 79 Figure 3.6 Lab Post Image-Board ................................................................................................ 79 Figure 3.7 Cons Post Image-Board .............................................................................................. 80 Figure 3.8 UKIP Post Image-Board .............................................................................................. 80 Figure 3.9 Post WordClouds........................................................................................................ 81 Figure 3.10 Post Mode Comparison Over Time .......................................................................... 81 Figure 3.11 UKIP Post Link Domains ........................................................................................... 82 Figure 3.12 Lab Post Link Domains ............................................................................................. 82 Figure 3.13 Cons Post Link Domains ........................................................................................... 83 Figure 3.14 Percentage of Immigration Posts per Month .......................................................... 83 Figure 3.19 Immigration Mug Tweet - Source: Abbott, 2015 ..................................................... 86 Figure 3.21 Percentage of Promotional Posts per Month .......................................................... 90 Figure 3.22 Labour Promo Posts ................................................................................................. 91 Figure 3.23 Cons Promo Posts .................................................................................................... 91 Figure 3.24 Trigger-Word Presence in Party Posts ..................................................................... 92 Figure 3.25 Major Post Themes .................................................................................................. 93 Figure 3.27 UKIP Immigration Posts ........................................................................................... 96 Figure 3.28 User Travel Frequency ............................................................................................