The specifics of media consumption of political information by students: a regional aspect (based on the results of a sociological study)

Morozova Galina Viktorovna ORCID: 0000-0002-7833-0283 Doctor of Economics Head of the Department; Higher School of Journalism and Media Communications; Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University 420111, Russia, Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan, professor Nuzhin str., 1/37, room 102 galina.morozova@kpfu.ru Nikitina Tat'yana Igorevna ORCID: 0000-0002-1062-9844 PhD in Politics Associate Professor; Graduate School of Journalism and Media Communications; Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University 420111, Russia, Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan, professor Nuzhin str., 1/37, room 102 tatyana_shreya@mail.ru Nikitin Aleksei Aleksandrovich ORCID: 0000-0002-9434-3818 PhD in Politics Associate Professor; Graduate School of Journalism and Media Communications; Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University 420111, Russia, Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan, professor Nuzhin str., 1/37, room 102 alexey011281@mail.ru

Yakupov Bulat Il'darovich ORCID: 0000-0003-0055-0806 Senior Lecturer; Graduate School of Journalism and Media Communications; Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University 420111, Russia, Tatarstan region, Kazan, professor Nuzhin str., 1/37, room 102 bulatj@inbox.ru

introduction

In recent decades, the information and communication environment has been in a state of constant transformation under the influence of new technologies, digitalization, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things, which has led to fundamental changes in the media space itself, both in terms of channels for transmitting and consuming content, and the volume and variety of topics of incoming information. The high rate of progress of media technologies in Russian society, having created an unlimited number of connections, removing temporary and territorial obstacles between network participants in receiving and transmitting information, has significantly increased the effectiveness of the media environment, communication of subjects with their public ^[1].

As a self-organizing system, the media space, with its unprecedented dynamics and intensity of functioning, has intensified its influence on all processes taking place outside its borders, which has posed fundamentally new challenges to society. Forecasting of possible strategies for the development of information and communication practices, including the national security of the country, understanding the complex and multilevel nature of media requests and media consumption, and, above all, youth, was updated. It is the younger generation that has become the main consumer and user of the media sphere ^[2]. At the same time, the concept of "media consumption" itself can be interpreted both extremely broadly and in an extremely narrow aspect ^[3,4,5].

Social networks, the unprecedented speed of development of media technologies, the digitalization of media and the versatility of sites in its structure, which makes it possible not only to organize leisure, occupy free time, communicate with friends, but also to prepare for classes with their help, search for information for studies, future work, and determined the role of networks as a key communication platform. Modern youth are increasingly turning to social media, communities created in them, ways of communication and mechanisms of interaction, using them to solve a variety of practical life and professional tasks ^[6].

In many ways, the increased need of the younger generation for media practices is associated with fundamental changes in the values, image and lifestyles of Russian society. Social networks, in fact, have become for the younger generation the main source of obtaining and forming knowledge about the country, the world, and the accumulation of social experience ^[7]. If in 2023 83% of the country's population used the Internet at least once a month (Social Media Report for the first half of 2023. Mediascope. – URL: https://mediascope.net/news/1681112 ), then almost one hundred percent of respondents turned out to be among the youth segment integrated into the digital environment.

The fundamental changes that have occurred in the media practice of the younger generation, its growing demand for it, the transformation of forms of satisfying the need for communication in the media sphere have, in fact, determined its dominant role in the process of socialization of youth, the development of a young person as a subject and object of public relations, extremely reducing the possibilities of traditional institutions - the family, the church, the education system. The communication relationships of young people are gradually moving from real life to the media system, where a person gets the opportunity for self-realization, self-expression, self-development, self-identification. In this regard, the study of the influence of the media environment on the needs and interest of the younger generation in it, on the nature of requests, forms of communication in the media sphere determines its scientific and practical-political significance ^[8].

The mass media, as a system for ensuring information and communication interaction in society, builds relationships between citizens and the authorities, and represents the interests of various social groups. Becoming an important factor in political development, the media sphere is changing the nature of power, the procedure for its formation and functioning, which makes it especially important for citizens to ensure equal access to information, the implementation of its principles of openness, completeness, and reliability. The solution to this problem is extremely relevant in relation to the younger generation, taking into account its greatest integration into the media environment, but having no social experience and undergoing a period of civic formation. The above causes the urgent need to study the impact of mass media on the process of formation of youth consciousness and, first of all, its central segment – the political one, which determines universally valid values and national identity, factors motivating the use of media in satisfying the demands and consumption of political content. To this end, a study was conducted on the practice of media consumption of the student youth of Kazan for the period 2022-2024, as the intellectual elite of the youth cohort, the creative, educated, initiative part of it, in many ways determining the future development of society.

METHODS

The methodological basis of the research was monographs on media issues, theoretical developments and approaches to the analysis of consumption by the youth segment of the media audience, the role of the media environment in the formation of political interests, orientations and attitudes of students in higher educational institutions, as well as the level of interest in political information, its sources, headings, forms of presentation in social networks. The empirical base was the data from the study of the structure of media consumption of students of Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University by means of a survey in the period from March 2022 to March 2024. A non-random quota sample was used to form a sample population during a mass survey. The general population — the number of students studying at KFU (only divisions in Kazan) — 30,000. The sample population was 400 respondents with a sampling error of 5%. Preparing the data for processing included encryption, encoding, and transferring the data to an xls file (Excel spreadsheet). The encryption was performed in numerical terms, the point of the scale in each specific question corresponded to the cipher of the answer options in the introductory program question. Data processing was performed in the SPSS Statistics program, standard information processing methods were used: simple distributions, percentages, averages, mode and variance of deviations, coefficients of association of qualitative features, rank and pair correlation coefficients presented in the form of layouts, tables and groupings, using feature code designations.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The transformation of the information and communication space, changes in the forms of content transmission, and the problems of its content have a significant impact not only on the nature and characteristics of youth media consumption, but also on building communication models, including political ones, the basic link of which is participation in elections. The study of the peculiarities of the use of channels and consumption patterns of information received by students in higher educational institutions, the role of the media environment in shaping their political interests, orientations, and attitudes during the election campaign for the election of the President of the Russian Federation in 2024 did not record any noticeable increase in the level of interest in political life during this election cycle. As before, half of the respondents (52.8%) are interested in politics only in connection with major news events, just over a quarter of respondents (27%) noted that they regularly follow events in the field of politics and one fifth (20.1%) of those participating in the study are not interested in politics at all.

Similar measurements have taken place in recent years. So, if we compare the data obtained with the results of the 2022 survey, then there are no significant changes in the level of student interest in political development issues. (Diagram No. 1)

Diagram No. 1

Student youth's interest in political events in 2022 (in %)

About a quarter of respondents (22.7%) regularly monitor political events in 2011, about one fifth of students in higher education (20.8%) are not interested in politics, and slightly more than half (52.9%) of respondents show interest in political content situationally, on a case-by-case basis. Differences in indicators from 0.1% to 4.3% are not statistically significant.

VKontakte social network is the most popular among information sources, as indicated by almost three quarters of respondents, and almost one in ten (9.7%) indicated that they do not use networks. Among messengers, according to our data, Telegram is the undisputed leader in receiving political content by students, it was named by the absolute majority — 90.9% of respondents, WhatsApp took the second place in the rating, which was emphasized by almost two thirds (63.7%) and VKontakte messenger (37%) took the third place.

The dominant role of the Internet, social networks, and messengers in providing information to young people is also confirmed by the answers to the question: "From which sources do you most often receive information about politics?" 83.8% of respondents prefer them, which is due to the possibilities of networks and mobile media terminals not only to effortlessly receive and exchange information on a wide variety of topics, but also to become an author and distributor of new content. At the same time, an unexpected result was the recognition of a fairly significant part of respondents — 28.4% who use traditional media (television, radio, print), contrary to popular belief that the popularity of this communication channel as a source of news information and socio-political content in general for young people is extremely low (Media consumption and activity in The Internet. VTSIOM Analytical review [Electronic resource]. – URL: https://wciom.ru/analytical-reviews/analiticheskii-obzor/mediapotreblenie-i-aktivnost-v-internete).

The generally low level of interest among students in political life, apparently, largely determines the low political activity, which is quite typical for most developed countries of Western democracy, and our youth are in this trend. Thus, 40.5% of respondents do not participate in any form of socio-political life of the country. Young people are most active during the election period, 40.3% of respondents noted that they participate in voting, which fits into the all-Russian trend of political activity of young citizens ^[9]. All other initiatives are mainly related to the life of the group, the institute, which was emphasized by one fifth (27.3%) of the participants in the study. The data obtained require reflection, since they pose a potential threat to the process of legitimization of state power, the existing political system in the strategic development of the country.

The revealed low interest of the student youth in the current political parties and the political elite is no less significant. To the question: "Do you read blogs, posts of Russian political figures and political parties?" — 54.1% answered "no, I don't read", and 4.9% found it difficult to answer, which totals almost 60%. In part, the disinterest of young people in consuming content is related to their trust in information from "official" channels (websites of political parties, executive and legislative authorities, blogs of Russian politicians). According to the results, only one fifth (20.2%) trusts them, 43.1% of respondents noted the answer option "not always" and 19.3% do not fully trust them. If we consider that 17.4% of respondents found it difficult to determine their level of trust in "official" sources, then it is quite reasonable to conclude that the rating of the Russian political elite is insufficiently high in the youth consciousness, which largely determines the low priority of politics in the rating of the life values of the younger generation. Hence, some of his detachment from political life is quite understandable. Only 15% of respondents admit the possibility of becoming a supporter of any party or public politician, half of the participants in the study answered "no" (51.3%) and 32% - "I don't know yet". At the same time, it is hardly fair to say that these data are only evidence of alienation, rejection of the world of politics by young people. Numerous studies invariably record the potential of the younger generation's interest in politics and political development. So, in particular, in the study of the social well-being of students in Kazan in March-May 2024, to the question: "What problems in the socio-political and economic life of Russia do you care most about?" only 4% of respondents replied that they did not know, and the absolute majority understands the current situation in the country, the problems of internal politics, Russia's relations with the world and gives an adequate assessment ^[10]. (Diagram No. 2)

Diagram No. 2.

Rating of problems of Russia's domestic political and international development (according to the survey in 2024)

Another argument in favor of the students' indifferent attitude to politics is the revealed motives for voting, indicating that the majority of respondents – 68.8% - are aware of the importance of exercising their political rights. Of these, a third of the respondents (32.1%) stressed that "elections determine the future of our country", one fifth of those participating in the study (19.9%) believe that participation in the elections of the country's authorities is "a chance to demonstrate their political position", almost the same number of respondents (16.8%) are sure that "it is the duty of every citizen of Russia."

CONCLUSIONS (SUMMARY)

Digital technologies and industries have made the media sphere today not only a source of knowledge consumption, information for social practice, but also turned it into an environment of self-realization, self-expression, and the formation of a personality as a subject. In this regard, the increasing influence of media systems, digital industries and technologies on all processes taking place in society has actualized the problem of optimizing interaction in the communication space in all its segments, including in the field of politics, in the processes of legitimization of power.

The formation of a model of interaction between the younger generation and the government, its communication with the political elite and public administration institutions is particularly difficult. This problem is connected, on the one hand, with the high integration of young people into the digital environment, the mediatized format of socialization, and the growing multi-level demand of the younger generation for social media. On the other hand, the difficulty of establishing communication between young citizens and the authorities is due to their certain detachment from the world of politics. The results obtained indicate a low level of interest among young people in it, which is largely situational in nature, usually associated with some major events. In general, a rather low social and political activity of the new generation has been revealed, which is also recorded by numerous other researchers (See, for example: VTSIOM-SPUTNIK - VTSIOM daily All-Russian telephone survey. Are you interested or not interested in these elections? (closed question, one answer). Data for 03/18/2018. URL: https://bd.wciom.ru/trzh/print_q.php?s_id=113&q_id=9060&date=03/18/2018; VTSIOM-SPUTNIK is a daily All-Russian VTSIOM telephone survey. Elections of deputies to the State Duma of the Russian Federation will be held in September 2021. Please tell me if the upcoming election campaign is personally interesting to you or not. The data for 17.01.2021. URL:https://bd.wciom.ru/trzh/print_q.php?s_id=356&q_id=40573&date=01/17/2021; VTSIOM-SPUTNIK is a daily All-Russian VTsIOM telephone survey. Elections of deputies to the State Duma of the Russian Federation will be held in September 2021. Please tell me if the upcoming election campaign is personally interesting to you or not. The data for 09/19/2021. URL: https://bd.wciom.ru/trzh/print_q.php?s_id=354&q_id=40226&date=19.09.2021 ).

Partly, the low priority of politics in the rating of life values, the revealed low level of youth confidence in "official" channels, websites of political parties, executive and legislative authorities, blogs of Russian politicians is probably due to ineffective youth policy, the lack of due attention of public authorities to the issues of social development of the younger generation, to the creation of conditions for their inclusion The processes of political development and governance are just some of the reasons explaining the results.

At the same time, it would be unfair to interpret these data only as evidence of the rejection of the youth of the world of politics. There is a potential for the younger generation's interest in politics and political development. Answering the question about the problems in the socio-political and economic life of Russia that concern young people, only 4% of respondents replied that they did not know, and the absolute majority understands the current situation in the country, the problems of domestic politics, Russia's relations with the world.

Changing the role of mass media in modern society, the almost complete inclusion of Russian youth in the digital environment, changing media preferences and the formation of a new structure of media consumption will undoubtedly lead to a transformation of consumption of political content, to shifts in the dynamics of political activity of young people and will require careful reflection.