What do party pages say about them? Network analysis of the official pages of brazilian political parties on facebook

Abstract

Our research seeks to understand the patterns of connection of key Brazilian parties on Facebook. The data was collected through Netvizz and the option “page like network” with two degrees of depth and examined the connection network of PSOL, PT, MDB, SDD, PSL e PL, parties with the most representation, in the Chambers of Deputies. We used social network analysis to examine these networks through modularity and indegree. Our results show the existence of neighborhood patterns between pages of political parties. There are parties connected to institutions, political actors, social movements and militancy networks, as well, as those with no connections to institutions in their network.