The Profile of the Political Influencer as a Result of Personalization and Celebrification on Social Media

Abstract

Introduction: Politics is undergoing a transformation marked by the digitalization of society—a phenomenon that, in political communication, has led to the incorporation of personalization and celebrification techniques to adapt to new processes, both electoral and related to the public agenda. Together, these dynamics shape the figure of the political-influencer. Objectives: The objectives of this study are, first, to analyze how personalization and celebrification have reshaped political communication between political actors and citizens; and subsequently, to characterize the profile of the political influencer by identifying its distinctive traits and the conditions that enable its emergence. Materials and Methods: The study adopts a qualitative approach with a descriptive documentary design, based on the review and deconstruction of specialized literature in political communication and digital sociology, complemented by recent reports on media consumption. Conclusions: The research identifies six traits that characterize the political-influencer: message personalization, intensive use of social media, blurring of boundaries between intimacy and public life, the replacement of party militants with followers, a preference for virality over substantive issue-based argumentation, the use of emotional and confrontational content. Finally, although these dynamics facilitate connection with young audiences and encourage various forms of citizen mobilization, they also contribute to the degradation of public debate, the weakening of ideological identities, and the exacerbation of institutional distrust.