Polarizing rhetoric and negative tone are thought to generate more attention on social media. We seek to describe and analyze how presidential candidates in Colombia’s 2022 election deployed (de)polarizing rhetoric and tone, around what topics, and with what effects. We analyze the tweets (and corresponding engagement) of the four leading candidates during the campaign. Tone behaves as expected. Negatively worded tweets receive overall more likes and retweets, though the strength of their effect varies by candidate. Polarizing rhetoric behaves differently. Using polarizing and depolarizing rhetoric proved better than neutral messages, but using depolarizing rhetoric, generated greater engagement than its polarizing counterpart. This study suggests that the visibility of a candidate does not necessarily correspond to their greater use of Twitter, an increased deployment of polarizing rhetoric, or an emphasis on negative emotions. This article provides a glimmer of hope regarding the potential usefulness of positive uniting messages on Twitter (now X).

中文翻译：

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推文对抗：哥伦比亚 2022 年总统竞选中的（去）极化言论和语气


人们认为，两极分化的言论和负面语气会在社交媒体上引起更多关注。我们试图描述和分析哥伦比亚 2022 年选举中的总统候选人如何围绕什么主题使用（去）极化言论和语气，以及产生什么效果。我们分析了竞选期间四位主要候选人的推文（以及相应的参与度）。音调表现如预期。总体而言，措辞负面的推文会收到更多的点赞和转发，尽管其效果的强度因候选人而异。两极分化的言论表现不同。事实证明，使用极化和去极化言论比中立信息更好，但使用去极化言论比极化言论产生了更大的参与度。这项研究表明，候选人的知名度并不一定与他们更多地使用推特、更多地使用两极分化言论或强调负面情绪相对应。本文为 Twitter（现在的 X）上积极团结信息的潜在用处带来了一线希望。