Persepsi Generasi Z Terhadap Abah Anton Sebagai Calon Walikota Kota Malang Pada Pilkada 2024 di Media Sosial

This research aims to explain how social media can influence Generation Z's perception of Abah Anton as a candidate for the Mayor of Malang City in the 2024 local elections. Generation Z refers to individuals born between 1995 and 2012, representing a potential voting demographic for the 2024 local elections. The research method employed is a case study with a descriptive quantitative approach to understand Generation Z's perceptions after being exposed to media regarding Abah Anton. In the context of the 2024 Malang City local elections, social media has become an important tool in shaping Generation Z's perceptions in Malang. Although surveys indicate that Generation Z's interest in political topics is relatively low, their relevance to the content they consume based on their needs plays a crucial role in shaping their perceptions of Abah Anton as a candidate for Mayor of Malang City. Based on the research findings, negative perceptions tend to prevail despite the low frequency and intensity of social media use regarding content about Abah Anton. This occurs because Generation Z uses social media based on their needs and the relevance of the content. Additionally, the emotional impact generated after viewing content about Abah Anton on social media serves as an additional factor in how negative perceptions are formed. However, the limitations of this study include a focus on the short-term effects of social media and a lack of concrete solutions for the identified issues. Further research is needed to explore the long-term effects of media exposure on perception formation.