Critical social media and political engagement in authoritarian regimes: the role of state media fairness perceptions

Bekmagambetov A.
2025 Routledge

Journal of Information Technology and Politics
2025 #22 Issue 3 322 - 339 pp.

This study investigates how exposure to critical social media content influences political engagement in authoritarian regimes, focusing on Kazakhstan. Addressing a gap in existing research, this paper examines the moderating role of state media fairness perceptions. Using representative survey data (N = 6,800), the analyses confirm that critical social media exposure is positively linked with political engagement, including state-sanctioned activities like party contact and legislative engagement. However, this effect varies significantly based on individuals’ perceptions of state media fairness. These results suggest that critical content can foster broader political participation and highlight the nuanced role of state media in shaping political behavior in closed states.

Authoritarian resilience , critical social media , Kazakhstan , political participation , state media

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Department of Political Science and International Relations, KIMEP University, Almaty, Kazakhstan

Department of Political Science and International Relations

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