(Re)constructing the Meanings of a Political Act Using the Social Network VKontakte: the Case of Ivan Golunov

Abstract

Citation: Shchekoturov A., Krishtal M. (2020) (Re)constructing the Meanings of a Political Act Using the Social Network VKontakte: the Case of Ivan Golunov. Mir Rossii, vol. 29,
no 4, pp. 150–170 (in Russian). DOI: 10.17323/1811-038X-2020-29-4-150-170

This article deals with the specifics and mechanisms of (re)constructing the meanings of political action in the social network VKontakte. In particular, we consider the case of journalist Ivan Golunov’s arrest and the political action that followed. Methodologically the study draws on the frame analysis approach, which is used to uncover how the meanings of a political act are reframed and transposed. This method is further enhanced with content analysis implemented in Atlas.ti software. Relevant social media posts were encoded in accordance with the attitude towards the journalist’s arrest, the stage of the action, the subject of the framing, and the hashtags used in the publication. An original typology of hashtags was used in the process of encoding. This typology was created on the basis of the goals that the hashtags were designed to achieve. We have established that hashtags contribute to informational
layering, transposition and the switching of the initial meaning of publications to new contexts that can subsequently accumulate protest attitudes. We formulate two main conclusions. First, in the course of the conflict the image perception of the key person involved in the action has changed. Whereas at the beginning, Golunov was considered a key participant in the event, from the moment of conflict resolution his image was turned into a symbol of aggregate discontent with the political system and certain institutions. Second, some specifics were revealed in the types of frame systems constructed by communities and individual accounts on the VKontakte social network. Publications in communities are characterized mainly by neutral content and the use of various types of hashtags, whereas publications in individual accounts are distinguished by explicit support for Golunov and the use of hashtags that demonstrate solidarity with him. As a result, new hashtag functions were formulated: frame fixing (typical for individual accounts) and PR (common to communities).