The Meaning of Islam in Joko Widodo's Social Media in the 2019 Presidential Election of the Republic of Indonesia

Abstract

This research describes the meaning of Islam in Joko Widodo's social media in the 2019 presidential election of the Republic of Indonesia. The existence of the internet and the wave of social media use by citizens changed the arena of dominant structures in politics. The formulation of the problem in this study is how is the meaning of Islam in Joko Widodo's social media in the 2019 presidential election in Indonesia from the perspective of meanings and media? The theory used is the meanings and media perspective by Gill Branston and Roy Stafford. This research uses qualitative methods with descriptive analytical, synthesis, and evaluative research types. Data were collected by collecting uploads about the Islamicity of Presidential Candidate Joko Widodo during the 2019 presidential election campaign on his official social media, namely @jokowi on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. In addition, data were obtained by means of interviews, observation, and documentation. Joko Widodo's account uploads about his Islamic posts on social media. Islam as the majority religion practiced by citizens of the Republic of Indonesia became a magnet during the 2019 presidential election campaign. There are at least 49 uploads about Islam on the @jokowi account.