HYDERABAD: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Social Media apps like Facebook, SnapChat are using innovative ways to encourage voters. Right from enabling app users to verify their voter IDs to reminders and stickers, social media platforms have been promoting voting among millenial voters, most of whom will be voting for the first time.
Maintaining transparency ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections, social media intermediaries such as Facebook, WhatsApp and other members of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) have adopted a ‘code of ethics’ for the upcoming elections 2019.
Like the US General Elections where Snapchat offered an ‘I voted’ filters on Election Day, the app has been sending reminders to its account holders asking them to check for their names in the electoral list. The company Snapchat said that it is looking to having filters counting down to the days before polls open. Additionally, Snap Maps is also expected to surface reminding you to check out what’s on your ballot and will show you nearest polling stations.
Facebook has launched a set of tools specifically for Indian users, with the aim of boosting engagement with voters ahead of elections. It has announced a new video feature called ‘Candidate Connect’ which will enable people to see 20-second videos from candidates based on questions from a consumer research. Facebook has also introduced a second feature ‘Share You Voted’—which will help people find polling station information and allow them to celebrate exercising their franchise. Based out of Singapore, the Facebook Response Team will work closely with the Election Commission of India.
“The teams will add a layer of defence against fake news, hate speech and voter suppression, and will work cross-functionally with our threat intelligence, data, engineering, community operations, legal and other teams,” said Samidh Chakrabarti, Director of Product Management, Civic Engagement in the newsletter on its website.
Telephonic campaigners
Hyderabad: Gone are the days when Truecaller could save a voter from the automatic recorded voice message asking to vote for a political party. Supporters of leading contestants are now donning the cape of telecallers to inform about their party and candidate to the voters over phone calls. The idea is to avoid the Truecaller app so that the voter is caught unaware and left with no option but to engage in a conversation with the party worker. In one such case, TRS candidate from Malkajgiri constituency M Ranjith Reddy asked his party workers to make phone calls to voters and inform about his candidature. While no other information —name or area of living—is set to be divulged, the exercise seems to be an easy way of reaching out to lakhs of voters. It is learnt that such telecallers receive remuneration of nearly `400 per day and are employed for ten days at a time.
Selfies with Kishan, Revanth
BJP’s Secunderabad MP pick G Kishan Reddy and Congress’ Malkajgiri candidate A Revanth Reddy are regularly seen patiently posing for selfies with voters. Will the trend continue even after the elections, remains to be seen.