An analysis of the political trajectory of Volodymyr Zelensky on Instagram

Abstract

The use of social media in politics has become an important communication tool. Although much of the research on the subject has focused on X, other platforms, such as Instagram, are gaining increasing traction among users. Among the political leaders who have used this tool to promote themselves, former actor Volodymyr Zelensky stands out, basing his communication primarily on social media and dispensing with traditional media. In this context, this study aims to analyze, both quantitatively and qualitatively, the use of Zelensky's official Instagram profile between 2018 and 2025, covering the period from his rise to the presidency to the current moment of the Russo-Ukraine War. A total of 8,287 posts were analyzed, totaling 1.2 billion likes and 26 million comments. The results indicate that the War period saw the highest volume of posts. The captions, initially marked by an encouraging tone, adopted, during the conflict, a vocabulary focused on defense and requests for help. The War period also accounts for almost 83% of user interactions. Zelensky primarily directed his communication towards topics such as international relations and the defense of Ukraine, with the category Defense and Exaltation of the Nation being the most stable and having the most predictable engagement pattern compared to others, such as Development and International Affairs. Considering the predominance of research based on social network X, this study is believed to stand out as one of the first to analyze Zelensky's activity on Instagram with this temporal scope, contributing to various areas of computing and government.