ABSTRACT
Humans are polarized on nearly every major topic, and it is worse in countries led by populist leaders. But would we be so susceptible to hateful and divisive speech if people were not addicted to social media? Populist leaders exert and maintain control when they dominant the microphone, which can include silencing dissidents and creating “news” outlets that are little more than vehicles for propaganda. With Facebook and other similar platforms, for example, populists control the narrative in its entirety. Given how users psychologically respond to various types of virtual stimuli, social media is a particularly effective medium for those who employ splitting and projective identification to maintain control of their followers. This chapter explores the link between social media’s methods for manipulating user psychology and how populist leaders exploit user vulnerabilities.
