MARUF AMIN’S POLITICAL COMMUNICATION STRATEGY IN THE 2019 ELECTION CAMPAIGN: A LESSON FOR ANTI-HOAX POLITICS

Abstract

Social media (Instagram) with embedded text in various forms of multimedia content have become an important battleground for politicians to place the relevance of their policies to the public during election campaigns. The narratives played by politicians in the digital space are aimed at securing the mass base and votes of supporters, while seeking early certainty of their victory. This study aims to analyze Maruf Amin’s political communication strategy in dealing with hoaxes in the 2019 Indonesian election campaign. In this study, the researchers used a qualitative method with a descriptive approach to analyze the data. Primary data were taken from interviews. Meanwhile, the secondary data ware from journal articles, books, news, report releases, and digital contents. The data analysis model used in this study is inductive analysis, an analytical model in qualitative research that does not depart from theoretical deductions but rather empirical facts. This article was prepared by applying research steps, starting with data collecting, data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/verification. Results indicated that digital political communication strategies applied in campaigns against hoaxes can be seen from how the digital presence with the identity of politicians, authentic character, and having intellectual and social capital as ulama is indirectly attached to scientific authorities who are bound by responsibility for delivering scientific truth. In addition, another finding is that coherence and consistency in campaigns can play an important role in success against hoaxes. To conclude, anti-hoax narratives in elections are inevitable. In other words, it is political resources that are free to use at any time and ready to be used by politicians to reaffirm an agenda, neutralize an issue, instill new ideas about nationalism, and provide educational and literacy messages for the wider audience.

Keywords

• political communication, social media, digital literacy, political campaign, general election.