Abstract
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In this study, we focus on the question to what extent social media is present in governmental and political communication. Social platforms have provided entirely new opportunities for interaction between individuals, but with the appearence of the internet, the polarization between the private and public sector has undergone significant changes. In the beginning, there was predominantly interaction between smaller communities, but with time communities sharing the same interests started to use these platforms to keep in permanent dialogue with the members. The new social platforms gradually took over public service functions, while slowly "infiltrating" political communication. Nowadays, government officials are rarely left the choice whether or not to be present and to participate on social media, since these platforms offer themselves for a significant presence for both individuals and non-traditional interest groups. Politicians responded rather quickly to the changes brought by this new medium, increasingly using social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and various blogs, for manifesting themselves online, gaining, thus, ever more support/visibility. As a result, personal profiles originally created by individuals and as such belonging to the private sphere by being politicized take on a public character–-especially in Anglo-Saxon countries, where the relationship between public figures and citizens is less formalised. In the United States by the late 2000s, social media appeared as a tool of political campaigns, paving already the way for fake news, as we seen. Politicians now make extensive use of social platforms, but in my wiew, they do not always do so in good faith.We briefly explore the psychology of the truth value of statements in political communication and their social and legal perception, as well as their relation to free speech - based on studies. In this context, we briefly discussed the role of gatekeepers, bearing in mind the differences in respective regulations in Europe and the United States. We examined two government cases in the United States and looked for answers in news and articles concerning the results of the 2020 presidential election and President Trump's campaign during the coronavirus pandemic. As to the outcome of the election, we analyzed the decisions of social platforms connected to the social media appearance of former President Trump which resulted in his banning from social media. This question was important because, as a result of our study, there would be a need for closer regulation of social platforms that can strongly define and distort political and governmental communication (because of political users). Targeting messages is more efficiently on social platforms to large amount of people, and it is very important, that there won’t be false informations.
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