Understanding Brexit on Facebook: Developing Close-up, Qualitative Methodologies for Social Media Research

Abstract

Facebook has frequently been implicated in the 2016 ‘Brexit’ referendum result, and support for Leave has been linked to wider nativist and populist mobilisations online. However, close-up, qualitative sociological research has not been conducted into the relationship between Brexit and social media use. This is, in part, due to the computational turn in online research, which has led to a disproportionate focus on quantitative big data analysis. This article argues for the value of close-up, qualitative enquiry to facilitate situated understandings of the reality of social media use and what it means to individuals. It outlines one such methodology developed to investigate pro-Leave Facebook users, to demonstrate how challenges posed by such research can be overcome, and the opportunities such enquiry affords for studying the role of social media in contentious politics. Invaluable insights gained include the way Facebook provides an empowering tool for making claims to political knowledge in the context of growing transnational nativist and populist grievances.

Memory making, memory marketing: Mobile films, social media, and popular struggle in Burkina Faso

“…In such arenas, the boundaries between "us"/"them," "here"/"there," "now"/"then," are blurred. Diaspora communities and seasoned experts interact with protesters and online activists, as well as with anonymous followers in order to support change and strengthen social and political action (see Bernal 2014;Hall 2022;Kirwin et al 2022). But let me be clear: there is no such thing as a "Facebook revolution," as some analysts suggested for the Tunisian revolution 2010-11.…”

“…Donald Trump's tweets are just one extreme example of how politics is articulated in parallel -in the streets, as it were -and on social media (Hart 2020). The implication of Facebook in the Brexit referendum in the UK is another example (Hall 2022). And Russia's war in Ukraine is certainly being fought both on the battlefield as well as on social media.…”

Trajectories towards Political Engagement on Facebook around Brexit: Beyond Affordances for Understanding Racist and Right-Wing Populist Mobilisations Online

“…While the majority of studies into online racism and right-wing populism centre on Twitter, this study investigated Facebook users (for the methodology of the wider study, see Hall, 2021). Facebook is by far the most popular social networking site in the UK (O’Dea, 2018), and its user base is less concentrated in the young and highly educated segments of the population than Twitter (Mellon and Prosser, 2017; Sloan, 2017), making Brexit voters statistically more likely to use Facebook (Ashcroft, 2016).…”

“…The study provided insights on a number of aspects of participants’ engagement, many of which are explored elsewhere (Hall, 2021, forthcoming). This article, based on thematic analysis of interview data, discusses specifically participants’ narratives of their trajectories towards becoming politically engaged on Facebook in order to reveal the human stories behind this transformation.…”

“…While these studies can tell us what behaviours or discussions are taking place on social media, they provide little insight into the lived realities within which these arise or their actual ideological consequences. Owing to an over-reliance on computational or ‘big data’ approaches to the study of political social media use (Fuchs, 2017), and a reluctance to engage in close-up research with ‘distasteful’ groups (Esseveld and Eyerman, 1992), research that connects these online manifestations with the users behind them is lacking (Hall, 2021). This leaves a stark gap in our understanding of the actual role of online realms in the mobilisation of support for Brexit and related issues.…”