Rachel Gibson

Humanities Lecturer at Manchester University

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A tale of three tribes: UK MPs, Twitter and the EU Referendum campaign

Liam McCloughlin, Stephen Ward, Rachel Gibson & Rosalynd Southern. https://doi.org/10.3233/IP-190140.  This paper examines the structure of Twitter communication networks between MPs during the 2016 EU Referendum campaign. In particular, the research examines the impact of Twitter in two dimensions: (1) how far social media might facilitate inter-party linkages thus eroding traditional … [Read more...]

When the Nerds Go Marching In: How Digital Technology Moved from the Margins to the Mainstream of Political Campaigns

When the Nerds Go Marching In shows how digital technology has moved from the margins to the mainstream of campaign and election organization in contemporary democracies. Combining an extensive review of existing literature and comparative data sources with original survey evidence and web content analysis of digital campaign content across four nations—the United Kingdom, Australia, France, and … [Read more...]

New Forms of Mobilization, New People Mobilized? Evidence from the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems

Pedro C Magalhães, John H Aldrich, Rachel K Gibson,  https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068818797367 Mobilization efforts by parties and candidates during election campaigns tend to reach those who are more likely to vote in the first place. This is thought to be particularly consequential for turnout among the young. Harder and less cost-effective to … [Read more...]

I am a Professor of Politics at the University of Manchester and my research focuses on how digital technologies are changing the way in which election campaigns are fought and won. My work is comparative in nature with a particular focus on developments in the UK, the U.S., Germany, Australia and France. I have published a wide range of articles and books on this topic, many of which are listed on this site, so please feel free to browse through. I am currently directing a five year study of Digital Campaigning and Electoral Democracy (DiCED) funded by the European Research Council and I am one of the Principal Investigators of the Norface project examining the impact of Data-Driven Campaigning. I have previously been a Principal Investigator of the Australian Election Study since 2001 and co-directed the internet component of the British Election Study (iBES) in 2015. Outside work I enjoy the delights of country living, dog walking and the odd spot of hill running in North Wales.

 

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