During the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, online political communication showed distinct patterns influenced by polling data.
Data & Methods:
* Twitter messages from @YesScotland and @UK_Together were analyzed during June 16 to September 17, 2014.
Key Findings:
* Better Together employed more negative tweets when polling ahead.
* Yes Scotland escalated negativity following each debate with leaders.
Why It Matters:
This study reveals how campaign sentiment shifts differently across organizations despite shared data sources.
| Tones from a Narrowing Race: Polling and Online Political Communication during the 2014 Scottish Referendum Campaign was authored by Evelyne Brie and Yannick Dufresne. It was published by Cambridge in BJPS in 2020. |
