Jakob Ohme

This project aims to study how visual information on digital platforms like Instagram and TikTok reshapes news content distribution and reception. It will explore how visual communication creates immersive experiences, affecting perceived proximity to political actors and citizens. The focus is on how multimodal content influences users' political involvement and understanding. The project assumes two mechanisms are at play: first, an upstream effect where visual political communication fosters interest and relatedness to political actors and societal issues; and second, a “democratic paradox” where perceived closeness through visual immersion leads users to believe they are engaging politically, only to be disappointed when outcomes don’t align with expectations. This project examines whether these mechanisms contradict each other or are multi-layered, with short-term engagement followed by medium-term distancing from the political system. The Swiss democratic system, with its direct democracy, offers an ideal setting to investigate how visual information on digital platforms impacts political engagement and perception within a direct democratic framework.