The Influence of YouTube on the Electoral Preferences of Young People on the Example of the Elections to the Moscow City Duma 2019

Every year the number of Internet users is increasing. New media and social networks have integrated in our lives. Moreover, using this part of communication is especially popular among young people who didn’t catch the peak of the heyday of traditional media or were able to switch to new media consumption formats rapidly. As social networks have a considerable influence on different groups of people, here comes the question about its’ political preferences on citizens. As a consequence, in this work we decided to pay a special attention to such online platform as YouTube. As a starting point, the case of the elections to the Moscow City Duma in 2019 was chosen. The aim of this research was to establish the link between the using of content from YouTube and the electoral preferences of young people. As a result of sociological survey, it was found that the frequency of viewing political content on YouTube affects the confidence of young people in the institute of elections in Russia and increases the possibility of protest voting. According to research, specific YouTube channels were identified which could also influence protest voting. Moreover, as a result of in-depth interviews, the reasons for the consumption of the content on particular channels and the factors contributed to the change in political preferences of young voters were also determined. In conclusion of the final qualification work we formulated some recommendations for subsequent studies in the field of media studies and political science.