The Social Election

The Social Election

What can a person say in a few lines of text? Twitter, which was created in 2006, has been one of the most widespread social networking services. It is an easy way to interact with friends, family, and celebrities in just under 140 characters. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are active on Twitter daily and constantly share their thoughts, feelings, and views on current events. Twitter is another platform for the candidates to argue, as well as in interviews and debates. Twitter has a negative effect on how the 2016 presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, interact with each other, which indicates to the public their weaknesses in being a potential president.

Donald Trump’s twitter is controlled by himself, not by a managing team, and he has plenty of negative things to say. When reviewing Trump’s account, one will find many tweets towards people and current events. In August of 2016, The New York Times published “The 258 People, Places, and Things Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter: A Complete List”. Under Hillary Clinton’s name, the word “crooked” appears 155 times. On July 29th 2016, Trump tweeted, “Crooked Hillary Clinton mentioned me 22 times in her very long and very boring speech. Many of her statements were lies and fabrications!” Throughout his tweets there are a wide collection of offensive adjectives. In this tweet in particular, he uses ‘crooked’, ‘very long’, and ‘very boring’.  His use of words and hostile tone towards Clinton’s speech indicates that he certainly wasn’t happy and felt her accusations were false. Instead of disagreeing with her, he chose to complain about it. Trump could easily cover up Clinton’s commentary by clearing the air and discussing the choices he would make if he is elected president. The public can use Twitter to read Trump’s personality.

Clinton’s Twitter reads differently:  future intentions for Clinton’s possible presidency, retweets about articles that praise her , and retweets and tweets that highlight Trump’s accused wrongdoings. For example, Clinton was startled by Newsweek’s article: “How the Trump Organization’s Foreign Business Ties Could Upend U.S. National Security”. The day the article was published, her reaction was to send out this tweet: “In light of @kurteichenwald’s report on the Trump Organization’s dangerous ties, here are 20 questions that Trump needs to answer- now.” This was followed by 20 questions tweeted to Trump, numbered and filled with intense questions about Trump’s future plans on foreign affairs. Since this was on Twitter, he had the right to ignore these questions and he did so. Clinton took the time to prepare thoughtful questions to Trump which she knew may never be answered.  Twitter isn’t exactly the place to fire an abundance of questions to your opponent. These questions would be viable when debating against Trump directly and would be more effective in making Trump answer them. Clinton uses Twitter as an extra platform to connect to the public. She wants to look better to them. Clinton's act does show what she does or doesn’t believe in, but it also reveals her character. The people can see that in Clinton’s possible presidency, she may use in appropriate timing and start unnecessary arguments.

Three students at Sam Houston State University conducted a study on Clinton and Trump’s tweets in July. In June, the students collected 794 tweets sent out by both sides during that month. They deciphered the tweets and examined what each candidate discussed. Their research found that “34 percent of Clinton’s tweets criticized Donald Trump, while only 22 percent of his tweets criticized her.” Criticizing, in Trump’s way, is using offensive terms and phrases and calling the other out on mistakes. Even though Clinton uses more of her tweets to strike at Trump, he spent 17 percent of his tweets bashing other Republicans, Democrats, media, etc.  Clinton tries to make herself seem like the better opponent by scrutinizing Trump. This displays that she wants to cover up her mistakes by shifting the attention on another’s mistakes, a skill she could use in her presidency. On the other hand, Trump focuses on condemning others. A judgemental and subjective person, like Trump, aren’t quality traits for a president. Twitter isn’t too effective in criticizing the other opponent. Each side has the possibility of hurting their image in the end.

Overall, Twitter is a platform that is used by the 2016 presidential candidates to spew their emotions and thoughts on anything they desire. Trump shows he is prone to complaining and judging others. Clinton focuses on calling out Trump’s mistakes. Twitter has helped the public gain an inside look by watching the candidates tweet each other that helps them determine what kind of potential president they could be. On a close inspection, the public can find their weaknesses within their accounts.

Works Cited

Lee, Jasmine C., and Kevin Quealy. "The 258 People, Places and Things Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter: A Complete List." The New York Times. The New York Times, 2016. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.

Dreyfuss, Ben. "Does Donald Trump Send His Own Tweets? An Investigation." Mother Jones. N.p., 14 Sept. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.  

Trump, Donald. @realDonaldTrump. 29th July 2016.

Eichenwald, Kurt. "How the Trump Organization’s Foreign Business Ties Could Upend U.S. National Security." Newsweek. N.p., 14 Sept. 2016. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.

Savransky, Rebecca. "Clinton Tweets 20 Questions Trump 'needs to Answer-now'" TheHill. N.p., 14 Sept. 2016. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.

Evans, Heather, Kayla Brown, and Tiffany Wimberly. Hillary Clinton Is Tweeting More than Donald Trump and Attacks Him More Often than He Does Her. N.p., 9 July 2016. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.