Visual Politics: TikTok versus Instagram in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election

The 2024 U.S. Presidential Election highlights the increasing prominence of visual social media platforms in shaping political discourse. This study compares Instagram and TikTok—two leading platforms differing in content type and curation mechanisms—to analyze their impact on political communication. Using over 814,810 Instagram posts and 1,174,086 TikTok posts tied to the election, we examine key differences in collaboration dynamics, algorithmic amplification, and the role of legacy media. Results reveal that Instagram's network-driven approach amplifies collaborative content, while TikTok's algorithm-driven feed prioritizes individual creators and novel content. TikTok further demotes right-leaning content, influencing partisan engagement patterns. Additionally, legacy media dominate Instagram's information ecosystem, whereas TikTok democratizes content discovery, favoring independent influencers. The study also explores sentiment shifts during key events, finding divergent rhythms of information persistence across platforms. These findings underscore the need for platform-specific strategies in political communication and raise critical questions about the evolving roles of algorithms and networks in mediating electoral engagement.