Quebec democracy and social networks

Photo: Getty Images iStockphoto While they are useful tools for politicians, social media is certainly not without risk. We have seen Quebec elected officials embarrass themselves with some of their posts.

Thomas Laberge – The Canadian Press

Published at 11:05

• Quebec

It’s hard to imagine a politician today who isn’t present on social media. However, they are a double-edged sword: they can embarrass elected officials when they are misused. But ultimately, are social media really an added value for democracy, or are they contributing to its erosion? ? The Canadian Press spoke with experts.

According to Catherine Ouellet, a professor of political science at the Université de Montréal, parties have no interest in doing without a presence on social media.

“For all parties, it allows them to speak directly to people and filter journalists. We can have a direct message without a filter or framing,” she explained in an interview with The Canadian Press.

“To completely cut yourself off from social media, I would find that a bit strange from a strategic point of view. Publishing a video that is seen by 12 million voters is very few resources compared to what it brings in,” adds the professor.

Prime Minister François Legault has 655,000 followers on his Facebook account, 392,000 on X (formerly Twitter) and 224,000 on Instagram. A video posted on the latter platform, in which he boasts about his government's accomplishments regarding Quebec identity, has been viewed by more than 43,000 people.

According to Carleton University professor of applied politics Émilie Foster, it is necessary for party leaders and ministers to have a presence on social networks like Facebook and X, but not necessarily for ordinary MPs.

“I know some people who have used social media very little and who are re-elected. It can be done. (…) What matters is being in your local media and being on the ground. That matters a lot more,” says the former Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) MNA for the Charlevoix–Côte-de-Beaupré riding.

She herself used social networks (Facebook, X and Instagram) when she was a member of parliament.

The professor of public and political communication at the École nationale d’administration publique, Philippe Dubois, thinks, for his part, “that the major social media platforms are essential today”.

“They allow for faster reactions and interactions than traditional media (…) Also, people expect to find the parties online. Not being there on these platforms could send a strange message,” he adds.

But social networks are not only used to reach voters. The parties also use it to do “political marketing” and “micro-targeting” of their potential political clientele, indicates Émilie Foster. The data collected thus becomes precise resources at the time of elections, for example.

Double-edged knife

Although they are useful tools for politicians, social media is certainly not without risk. We have seen Quebec elected officials embarrass themselves with some of their publications.

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The Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault, had to explain and apologize after the “Journal de Montréal” found several photos of her on her social networks where she was not wearing her seat belt in the car.

François Legault regularly shares his reading material on social media. While this type of publication is generally harmless, controversy erupted when the Prime Minister talked about Kevin Lambert’s latest book, Que notre joie demeure. The author – who clearly did not appreciate François Legault’s interpretation of his work – harshly criticized it under his publication.

And during elections, it is not uncommon to see candidates find themselves in trouble for old social media posts that would have been better deleted.

“Social networks can also quickly have more risks than advantages, because if you make a mistake, the national media will pick up on it and that's risky,” underlines Émilie Foster.

“Poisoning democracy”

About fifteen years ago, in the scientific literature, social networks were seen as “democracy enhancers” that would allow “everyone to be connected,” says the professor at Carleton University.

However, things have changed. “Social networks are contributing to poisoning democracy,” says Émilie Foster.

Several problems are raised by the professors interviewed by The Canadian Press, whether we think of the phenomenon of echo chambers or the disinformation – amplified by artificial intelligence – that is rife on social networks.

“In the long run, it polarizes the debate and contributes to increasing aggression and incivility. When people lock themselves in their bubble of algorithms and are always presented with the same thing, they are convinced that they have the truth, but their truth is based on misinformation,” summarizes Émilie Foster.

“Many studies point the finger at social networks as fueling polarization (…) It does not help constructive dialogue between citizens who do not think the same thing,” says Catherine Ouellet. However, she qualifies this by stating that social media also contributes to a form of “democratization” of politics.

And with disinformation content mixing with politicians’ posts, it’s becoming difficult to distinguish truth from falsehood. “The power dynamics on social media are different than in real life. On major platforms—on X, for example—whether you’re the premier of Quebec or a convenience store employee, technically you have the same importance,” says Professor Philippe Dubois.

To exist publicly, politicians must therefore invest in these platforms to speak to their voters and to highlight their accomplishments. At the same time, they expose themselves to the risk of being vehemently criticized by “trolls” or seeing their posts drowned in the flood of disinformation.

The issue of regulating social media is often raised to counter its problems. However, it is an eminently complex issue for governments. Let us recall that Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has been blocking Canadian news on its platforms since the government passed a law requiring the payment of royalties to the media.

“There will have to be more consultation between countries to require platforms to have more ethical practices,” says Émilie Foster, who is well aware of the difficulties of the matter.

“I think we are in a transition, but sooner or later, these platforms will have to be more regulated,” she adds.