The dangerous power of social media in Barcelona's presidential election

Barcelona's presidential elections have entered a new dimension. For good or for bad. That now depends on how each candidate uses social media. There will be some that use it better than others. We're already seeing that. Even though many don't want to believe it is true, social media is here to stay and the Barcelona world would do well to keep that in mind. 

You don't have to look very far to see an example of its power. It was during the vote of no confidence. "Four Twitter users," some said at the time. The result? Nearly 20,000 signatures leading to the resignation of Josep Maria Bartomeu. And the large part of that movement was on Twitter, the social network used by millions of Barça fans. Supporters if not necessarily socios. And both are just as important. The noise drummed up made many socios leave their homes to sign the motion against Bartomeu. That would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.  

Social media serves for good and for bad. The good? That during a global pandemic, the candidates for the presidency still have a voice to talk to the socios. Videos, quotes, denials and much more. Also interviews. And many candidates have spoken, or will do, to, for example, Víctor Palacios' YouTube channel (159K subscribers) or to @Inie8tazo (104K subscribers). From there, headlines are created. And the campaign chiefs know that. They want to show that they are close to these new forms of communication. Every vote counts. the most active is Victor Font. Anyone that follows him can see how willing he is to respond to doubts about his project. He has quickly offered a way of explaining his project. That should be applauded. If the socios and the fans can be closer to the club, it's much better. 

And the bad? Victor Font also experienced it a few days ago. He announced that Jordi Majo, a previous presidential candidate, would join his campaign. Hours later, he cut ties with Majo. The reason? Old tweets that did not align with Font's vision. Font, who was attacked due to the ancient comments, quickly reacted. 

A tweet has also surfaced from Maria Teresa Andreu, a director on Font's team, which isn't kind about Toni Nadal, one of the heavyweights on Font's team. The tweet is from 2011, mind. 

But we know the strength of social media. And if not, look at Sergi Guardiola, released from Barça B the same day he signed for the club after tweets came to light in which he had made derogatory comments about Catalonia. That's the thing with Twitter. Everything can be found. Even a campaign manager posted a tweet against the man he is now working for in 2013 -- as @JoanFontes has warned Toni Freixa. The magic of social media. For good or for bad.