The socio-political uses of online information. Reading, sharing and commenting news on Facebook.

The thesis focuses on the socio-political uses of online news for laymen, specifically on Facebook. Originally designed for the private exchange, this social network has also become a place to access, share and comment the news. These practices are analysed through three inputs: the specifics of the technical device, the relation to politics by participants, and, finally, the role of gender in speaking out on Facebook.
This work is based on a comparative analysis of participation around political events on selected Facebook media pages and on personal profiles of the social network. The methodology is based on an online ethnographic observation and on qualitative interviews.
The main results show that political events lead to reactions based more on emotion than on rationality and on opinion camps clashes. These debates mainly take place on the media public pages while the timelines are rather dissemination areas, by sharing news. Women manifest as much as men their interest for public issues and Facebook is a common area to express indignation. Despite asserted opinions, women get involved in more moderate forms of interaction unlike men who are more invested in conflictual exchanges. In a sense, if Facebook contributes to an extension of the public space, participation remains limited and does not akin to discussions that are likely to revive democracy.