(Elite) Monologues on social media during Cyprus’ peace negotiations: Twitter as a mirror of offline politics in divided societies

In conflict and post-conflict contexts, social media can play an important role in peacebuilding efforts. Therefore, it is essential to understand who disseminates what messages and who has the power to influence debates. This article, using a social network perspective, studies Twitter interactions during the 2021 Cyprus peace talks with a focus on Twitter influencers and elites. The findings show that elite influencers dominated the Twitter debate about these peace efforts, and politicians and media organizations were the top influencers. The platform was used for elite-to-elite communication within each side, with little to no dialogue between negotiating elites. Overall, communication on Twitter reflected traditional media, with male elite influencers’ perspectives taking centre stage in parallel political monologues, blocking the prospects for reunification. Consequently, the micro-blog mirrored and subsequently reproduced elite dominated offline politics that sustain the de-facto ethnoterritorial division.