PROTEST FRAMING SHIFT ON SOCIAL MEDIA: COMPARING POPULIST AND CULTURAL LEADERSHIP RESPONSES IN INDONESIA

Background Protests involving regional heads increasingly generate contested framing dynamics within digital discourse, yet limited research has examined how leaders’ physical presence at demonstration sites shapes the framing strategies that unfold across social media. This study investigates this phenomenon through two comparative cases in Indonesia: Dedi Mulyadi, Governor of West Java, and Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, Governor of the Special Region of Yogyakarta. Methods Employing a qualitative approach grounded in categorical content analysis and Framing Theory, this study analyzed 7,905 pieces of content collected from six social media platforms (TikTok, Twitter/X, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Threads) via Intelligence Socio Analytic (ISA) during the August–September 2025 demonstration period, with total impressions reaching 310,034,855 (Dedi Mulyadi, n = 4,393; Sri Sultan HB X, n = 3,512). Results Four principal findings emerged. First, leaders’ physical presence correlated with distinct framing shifts: leader framing dominated the Dedi Mulyadi case (43.0%) at a 2.8:1 ratio over issue framing (15.1%), whereas hybrid framing overwhelmingly dominated the Sri Sultan HB X case (93.6%), reflecting the entanglement between the Sultan’s persona and Rheza Sendy’s death. Second, public resonance did not correlate linearly with framing production volume: hybrid framing achieved the highest average engagement in both cases (4,807 and 1,426 per content, respectively) while dominating total impressions (65.5% and 95.0%). Third, populist-electoral versus cultural-monarchical leadership contexts substantially moderated framing shift patterns. Fourth, platforms functioned as structural framing agents, with TikTok favoring leader framing and Twitter/X favoring issue framing. Conclusions This study extends Framing Theory by positioning regional heads as active framing actors and introduces the concept of platform-mediated framing contest, offering new insight into how leadership presence, platform architecture, and public engagement jointly shape protest-related discourse in Indonesia.