Investigating the use of TikTok by the National Unity Platform for political mobilisation in Kawempe North By-Election in Uganda

Abstract

The study investigated the use of TikTok by the National Unity Platform (NUP) for political mobilisation in Kawempe North By-Election in Uganda, with the purpose of understanding the evolving role of social media in shaping political discourse in emerging democracies, such as Uganda. Specifically, the study sought to explore ways through which the NUP employed TikTok for political mobilisation, to investigate the strategic considerations that informed the party’s content on the platform, and to find out the party’s overall experiences in deploying TikTok as a medium for political mobilisation during the Kawempe North by-election. To achieve the aforementioned objectives, the study was guided by the Technology Acceptance Model and the Collective Action Theory. The study employed a qualitative research approach using a case study design and qualitative data collection techniques such as in-depth interviews and qualitative content analysis. The findings revealed that NUP used TikTok for call to action, rally the public to protect votes, promote its candidate, expose irregularities and sell party ideologies. The findings also revealed that NUP’s TikTok content was guided by blending music and speeches, informative messages, and humorous content. Additionally, the study found that using the platform came with both positive and negative outcomes such as real-time messaging, real-time feedback, wider coverage, targeted attacks aimed at the party, expensive data and an unreliable network. The study concluded that packaging political speeches with music could help politicians and political organisations make their messages more appealing to target audiences. It also concluded that drafting social media messages meant for political mobilisation requires a thorough understanding of the audience. The researcher recommends political parties intending to leverage social media for political mobilisation to have enough preparation such as putting together a robust team to capture every moment and also have sufficient funds for buying data as an enabler for digital space use.