5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Big data and Social Network Analysis have become common in the social sciences. These methods are considered key to analyze political communication in the digital public sphere, which is a space for citizens to express themselves on issues that affect the community. At a global level, the main recent crises such as Brexit in the UK, the COVID-19 pandemic, the invasions of Ukraine and Palestine, or the migration crises, among others, have generated an increase in polarization of societies, the populist discourse and the post-truth phenomena. This session is intended to receive proposals in which this type of big data and SNA analysis (such as Facebook, X, TikTok, or Instagram) are applied to different social and political processes. Specifically, processes of polarization, populist speeches that can promote hatred against certain groups and institutions, and the various forms of post-truth used by participants in the digital debates. We aim to promote interdisciplinary collaboration in data science research to improve our understanding of phenomena such as debates during electoral campaigns around the world, public discussion processes on controversial issues, emerging social processes, social coordination, etc. The selected communications can shed light on the communication strategies used in the digital space and the different ways neutralize the impact of these discourses on the decisions of citizens when consuming information on social networks and contributing to its dissemination, when it comes to uncivil discourses, post-truth or populism based on emotional and unreasoned arguments.