However, traditional media are creating social media profiles to adapt themselves to this online context (Chadwick, 2013). For example, the social network Twitter has become a professional communication tool (Ramos del Cano, 2013).

1.4. Social media in public institutions: Twitter as a communication tool

In this section we will study thoroughly the new media context and the use that public administrations and their leaders make of social media.

Public organizations tend to use traditional media to raise visibility, but social media have emerged as a new scenario (Baamonde, 2011).

This new media context has fostered new public forms of participation, in which citizens can interact with public administrations both by creating content and setting the agenda (Jenkins, 2006). Because of social networks, the way in which citizens participate in social and political debates is changing (Bennett & Segerberg, 2014).

The emergence of social media enhances the participation of citizens in public policy and bi-directionality (Bertot et al., 2010; Chun et al., 2010). Public institutions and their leaders can learn about needs and demands through social media. According to the authors Congosto and Aragon, ‘citizens can interact with them, echo their messages, follow their slogans, show their disagreement or simply quote them by their real name’ (2012: 51).

However, Giansante (2015) states that neither political parties nor leaders running public institutions make the most of social media. They use them as another means to amplify their messages. In this sense, we understand that it can be extrapolated to public institutions because they can also interact with citizens by means of social media.

Regarding social networks, public administrations are increasingly using them. However, in most cases, it is one-way information and neither participation nor dialogue with citizens is encouraged (García, 2012; De Ramon, 2014; Manfredi and Femenía, 2016; Robles, 2019).

In recent years, research on the activity of administrations on social networks has been carried out, especially on Twitter (Romero and Mena, 2013; Vázquez, 2013; Martínez and Piñeiro, 2014; Pardo, 2014; Simelio and Molina, 2014, Catalina et. al, 2015).

The social network Twitter is considered a social medium that facilitates access to information and interaction with public administrations (Grimmelikhuijsen & Meijer, 2014).

2. Methodology

The methodology adopted in this research is triangular with the purpose of analysing the congruence of the legitimacy judgements made about the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports between the organization itself, the media and citizens.

It has been studied how the messages of the ministry and minister, particularly the Ministry of Education of the Spanish Government and the ministers José Ignacio Wert and Iñigo Méndez de Vigo (2011-2015), interact with the media and citizens.