TikTok’s rapid emergence as a political communication venue raises questions about how platform affordances and recommendation dynamics are associated with campaign messaging styles. Drawing on Media Ecology theory and the concept of affective publics, this study analyzes the complete corpus (N = 276) of TikTok posts published by U.S. presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris between June and November 2024, encompassing all content shared since their accounts were launched. Content analysis identified two complementary dimensions of platform use. Form-based features (i.e., direct-to-camera appeals, crowd-centered spectacle, and informal “cool” interactions) characterized visual presentation, while content-based themes (i.e., humor, symbolic contrast, and celebrity or influencer appearances) structured affective and identity-oriented messaging. Shorter, performance-oriented videos were associated with higher per-post engagement, whereas longer, issue-focused narratives corresponded with steadier but lower interaction levels. Rather than suggesting deterministic platform effects, the findings indicate how candidates adapt their communication practices to the platform’s visibility conditions. The study contributes an empirically grounded account of how social media environments are associated with changes in campaign style and political meaning-making.
Bronstein et al. (Sat,) studied this question.
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