Distributed creativity as political expression: Youth responses to the 2016 U.S. presidential election in online affinity networks

In this article, we employ the lens of distributed creativity to explore how youth use online creativity to express themselves politically and engage in political dialogue with peers. We examine youth participation around the 2016 U.S. presidential election results on three online affinity networks representing different creative genres (games, fan fiction, and collaborative multimedia production). By qualitatively analyzing 1,116 creative artifacts and 14,202 associated responses posted in the two weeks following the election, we find that youth use online creativity to (re)claim agency towards the political process, provide peers with social support or distraction, and (re)imagine the political. Implications for youth and media, online participation, and political communication are discussed, thus further theorizing the connections between creativity and political expression.