Pub Date : 2024-09-28DOI: 10.1177/20563051241279253
Sophie Minihold, Sophie Lecheler, Claes de Vreese, Sanne Kruikemeier
Data-driven political campaigning strategies often remain a black box for citizens; however, educational interventions provide a means to enhance understanding, conscious evaluations, and skills. In this context, we term this combination digital campaign competence (DCC). We conducted an online pre-registered experiment in Austria ( N = 553) using a 2 × 2 between-subject design to compare intervention formats (reading a voter guide vs. playing a campaign game) and content framing (emphasizing risks vs. benefits of data-driven campaigning) plus a control condition. Results show no significant differences in framing on DCC. However, variations are observed among different formats, with the non-interactive voter guide proving to be the most effective one. Contrary to our expectations, the voter guide emphasizing the risks of data-driven political campaigning enhanced conceptual understanding levels, influenced evaluative perceptions, and aided skill development to detect highly targeted ads. We argue that innovative interventions do not always guarantee success in enhancing competencies.
{"title":"Game Over? Using (Not So) Innovative Interventions to Increase Digital Campaign Competence","authors":"Sophie Minihold, Sophie Lecheler, Claes de Vreese, Sanne Kruikemeier","doi":"10.1177/20563051241279253","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241279253","url":null,"abstract":"Data-driven political campaigning strategies often remain a black box for citizens; however, educational interventions provide a means to enhance understanding, conscious evaluations, and skills. In this context, we term this combination digital campaign competence (DCC). We conducted an online pre-registered experiment in Austria ( N = 553) using a 2 × 2 between-subject design to compare intervention formats (reading a voter guide vs. playing a campaign game) and content framing (emphasizing risks vs. benefits of data-driven campaigning) plus a control condition. Results show no significant differences in framing on DCC. However, variations are observed among different formats, with the non-interactive voter guide proving to be the most effective one. Contrary to our expectations, the voter guide emphasizing the risks of data-driven political campaigning enhanced conceptual understanding levels, influenced evaluative perceptions, and aided skill development to detect highly targeted ads. We argue that innovative interventions do not always guarantee success in enhancing competencies.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142329249","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
With the rapid growth of TikTok in the last few years, we have seen the emergence of global influencers from diverse backgrounds, whose popularity is enhanced by TikTok’s specific content-based algorithm. In North America, the meta-hashtag #NativeTikTok has become a sharing space for a diverse Indigenous online community. Among these, several young Inuit women have acquired a large fanbase, allowing them to display their culture to a vast public, as well as to bring awareness to issues relating to the Arctic. In this article, we analyze how TikTok became a scale-shifting media for contemporary self-affirmation and displaying of Inuit culture. Drawing data from a case study of six Inuit influencers and an online thematic analysis of their content, we discuss definitions of Inuit authenticity on digital screenscapes, before presenting an analysis of content shared by young Inuit influencers to better understand specific forms of storytelling on TikTok and tensions pertaining to authentic cultural self-presentation. We argue that the TikTok platform provides an efficient tool for young Inuit women to engage with, learn about, and display their culture in their own terms, self-presenting as diverse and modern, in contrast with colonial Inuit imageries.
{"title":"Out With the Hero: How TikTok Everyday Stories Are Re-writing the Arctic","authors":"Arielle Frenette, Mélanie Millette, Caroline Desbiens","doi":"10.1177/20563051241283426","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241283426","url":null,"abstract":"With the rapid growth of TikTok in the last few years, we have seen the emergence of global influencers from diverse backgrounds, whose popularity is enhanced by TikTok’s specific content-based algorithm. In North America, the meta-hashtag #NativeTikTok has become a sharing space for a diverse Indigenous online community. Among these, several young Inuit women have acquired a large fanbase, allowing them to display their culture to a vast public, as well as to bring awareness to issues relating to the Arctic. In this article, we analyze how TikTok became a scale-shifting media for contemporary self-affirmation and displaying of Inuit culture. Drawing data from a case study of six Inuit influencers and an online thematic analysis of their content, we discuss definitions of Inuit authenticity on digital screenscapes, before presenting an analysis of content shared by young Inuit influencers to better understand specific forms of storytelling on TikTok and tensions pertaining to authentic cultural self-presentation. We argue that the TikTok platform provides an efficient tool for young Inuit women to engage with, learn about, and display their culture in their own terms, self-presenting as diverse and modern, in contrast with colonial Inuit imageries.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142325477","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-25DOI: 10.1177/20563051241279258
Afsane Danesh, Seyyed Hossein Athari
One of the most obvious characteristics of Iran’s protests in September 2022 is the emergence of a type of cyber activism that, unlike mass activism, is formed first in cyberspace. Networks have redefined social action and structure in our societies and have important consequences on production processes, power, and culture, challenging political systems, and creating legitimacy crises. The subject of the present research is important because cyber activism has an external aspect and has changed the shape of Iran’s social movements. This article is based on the Twitter data analysis method and using MAXQDA. Referring to Castells’ network society theory, it addresses this question: What role did the Twitter play in September 2022 in Mahsa Amini’s social movement? This article shows that the Twitter, in the context of existing dissatisfactions and in the absence of active organizations and parties, has led to an increase in cyberactivism in Iran. This cyberactivism encompasses mass self-communication, occupation of urban space, horizontal leadership, globalization of messages, mobilization and guidance of public opinion, nationalism, the subjectivity of women, and their identification has been its external manifestation.
{"title":"Cyber Activism in Iran: A Case Study","authors":"Afsane Danesh, Seyyed Hossein Athari","doi":"10.1177/20563051241279258","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241279258","url":null,"abstract":"One of the most obvious characteristics of Iran’s protests in September 2022 is the emergence of a type of cyber activism that, unlike mass activism, is formed first in cyberspace. Networks have redefined social action and structure in our societies and have important consequences on production processes, power, and culture, challenging political systems, and creating legitimacy crises. The subject of the present research is important because cyber activism has an external aspect and has changed the shape of Iran’s social movements. This article is based on the Twitter data analysis method and using MAXQDA. Referring to Castells’ network society theory, it addresses this question: What role did the Twitter play in September 2022 in Mahsa Amini’s social movement? This article shows that the Twitter, in the context of existing dissatisfactions and in the absence of active organizations and parties, has led to an increase in cyberactivism in Iran. This cyberactivism encompasses mass self-communication, occupation of urban space, horizontal leadership, globalization of messages, mobilization and guidance of public opinion, nationalism, the subjectivity of women, and their identification has been its external manifestation.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"103 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142321491","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-23DOI: 10.1177/20563051241277607
Alexandria C. Onuoha, Sara Matsuzaka, Alexis G. Stanton, Vanessa V. Volpe, Lanice R. Avery
Despite young Black women’s high rates of social media use and risks for victimization at the nexus of sexism and racism, the relationship between these variables remains under researched in this segment. We surveyed 354 Black American women aged 18–30 to explore the associations between two aspects of social media use—time spent daily on social media platforms (i.e., Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Tumblr, Twitter, and YouTube) and type of social media engagement (i.e., active social use, active non-social use, and passive use)—with four different types of online victimization (i.e., general online victimization [GOV], online sexual victimization [OSV], online individual racial victimization [OIRV], and online vicarious racial victimization [OVRV]). Results indicate that more time spent daily on Tumblr was significantly associated with more experiences of GOV, OSV, and OIRV. More time spent daily on Instagram was significantly associated with more experiences of OVRV, while more time spent daily on Facebook was significantly associated with fewer experiences of OVRV. Active non-social use was significantly associated with more experiences of GOV and OIRV. Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube use, active social use, and passive use were not significantly associated with any categories of online victimization. We provide implications for researchers as well as mental and behavioral health practitioners seeking to enhance Black women’s safety and well-being on social media platforms.
{"title":"Young Black American Women’s Social Media Use and Online Victimization","authors":"Alexandria C. Onuoha, Sara Matsuzaka, Alexis G. Stanton, Vanessa V. Volpe, Lanice R. Avery","doi":"10.1177/20563051241277607","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241277607","url":null,"abstract":"Despite young Black women’s high rates of social media use and risks for victimization at the nexus of sexism and racism, the relationship between these variables remains under researched in this segment. We surveyed 354 Black American women aged 18–30 to explore the associations between two aspects of social media use—time spent daily on social media platforms (i.e., Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Tumblr, Twitter, and YouTube) and type of social media engagement (i.e., active social use, active non-social use, and passive use)—with four different types of online victimization (i.e., general online victimization [GOV], online sexual victimization [OSV], online individual racial victimization [OIRV], and online vicarious racial victimization [OVRV]). Results indicate that more time spent daily on Tumblr was significantly associated with more experiences of GOV, OSV, and OIRV. More time spent daily on Instagram was significantly associated with more experiences of OVRV, while more time spent daily on Facebook was significantly associated with fewer experiences of OVRV. Active non-social use was significantly associated with more experiences of GOV and OIRV. Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube use, active social use, and passive use were not significantly associated with any categories of online victimization. We provide implications for researchers as well as mental and behavioral health practitioners seeking to enhance Black women’s safety and well-being on social media platforms.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142313810","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-23DOI: 10.1177/20563051241274658
Loïc Riom
While the literature on music digital platforms has focused mainly on the consequences of production and consumption, few works have looked at platformization from the perspective of companies active in the music business. Drawing on an ethnographic inquiry of Sofar Sounds—a London-based company that organizes intimate and secret concerts in unconventional spaces—I introduce platform work to explore the kinds of practices in which platforms engage. I identify three operations in Sofar Sounds’ platform work: the incorporation of Sofar Sounds concerts into digital devices; its financing by venture capital (VCs) funds; and the activation and generification of its global community. In conclusion, I argue that being a platform involves organizational practices and that studying these practices shifts our attention beyond a few limited successful companies. I propose that light-tech capitalism accounts for this mundane and unsophisticated aspect of platform work.
{"title":"Being a “Global Music Platform”: Platform Work in Light-Tech Capitalism","authors":"Loïc Riom","doi":"10.1177/20563051241274658","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241274658","url":null,"abstract":"While the literature on music digital platforms has focused mainly on the consequences of production and consumption, few works have looked at platformization from the perspective of companies active in the music business. Drawing on an ethnographic inquiry of Sofar Sounds—a London-based company that organizes intimate and secret concerts in unconventional spaces—I introduce platform work to explore the kinds of practices in which platforms engage. I identify three operations in Sofar Sounds’ platform work: the incorporation of Sofar Sounds concerts into digital devices; its financing by venture capital (VCs) funds; and the activation and generification of its global community. In conclusion, I argue that being a platform involves organizational practices and that studying these practices shifts our attention beyond a few limited successful companies. I propose that light-tech capitalism accounts for this mundane and unsophisticated aspect of platform work.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142313809","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-17DOI: 10.1177/20563051241279549
Kellan McNally, Kathryn Wright, Lauri Goldkind, Shanna K. Kattari, Bryan G. Victor
The purpose of this study was to describe how autistic TikTok creators are using ChatGPT across various domains of their lives, their motivations for doing so, and resulting impacts. Using a framework of “disability expertise,” we document the knowledge that creators acquired through use of ChatGPT and then shared with peers via social media. We used deductive qualitative methods to analyze 25 TikTok videos from 25 unique creators. Themes were identified in connection with motivations for the use of ChatGPT, settings in which it was used, applications of this technology, and resulting impacts for creators. Findings indicate that autistic creators were motivated to use ChatGPT to navigate neurotypical environments, manage features of their neurodivergence, and unmask, with the technology often serving as a digital coach, communication assistant, and conversational partner. Use of ChatGPT resulted in harm reduction, time and energy savings, positive emotional experiences, and meaningful accomplishments in both personal and professional settings. These findings indicate that ChatGPT serves as an important resource for many autistic individuals, facilitating accommodations to often inaccessible environments and helping users manage stressors and pursue goals. The study also highlights the significance of social media platforms for disseminating disability expertise related to the use of large language models to improve quality of life.
{"title":"Disability Expertise and Large Language Models: A Qualitative Study of Autistic TikTok Creators’ Use of ChatGPT","authors":"Kellan McNally, Kathryn Wright, Lauri Goldkind, Shanna K. Kattari, Bryan G. Victor","doi":"10.1177/20563051241279549","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241279549","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of this study was to describe how autistic TikTok creators are using ChatGPT across various domains of their lives, their motivations for doing so, and resulting impacts. Using a framework of “disability expertise,” we document the knowledge that creators acquired through use of ChatGPT and then shared with peers via social media. We used deductive qualitative methods to analyze 25 TikTok videos from 25 unique creators. Themes were identified in connection with motivations for the use of ChatGPT, settings in which it was used, applications of this technology, and resulting impacts for creators. Findings indicate that autistic creators were motivated to use ChatGPT to navigate neurotypical environments, manage features of their neurodivergence, and unmask, with the technology often serving as a digital coach, communication assistant, and conversational partner. Use of ChatGPT resulted in harm reduction, time and energy savings, positive emotional experiences, and meaningful accomplishments in both personal and professional settings. These findings indicate that ChatGPT serves as an important resource for many autistic individuals, facilitating accommodations to often inaccessible environments and helping users manage stressors and pursue goals. The study also highlights the significance of social media platforms for disseminating disability expertise related to the use of large language models to improve quality of life.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142236833","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-17DOI: 10.1177/20563051241279255
Emily A. Mendelson, Jacob Kenton Smith
The Dating Wrapped trend on TikTok takes inspiration from Spotify’s annual Wrapped event where Spotify users are presented with their year-end listening statistics. Dating Wrapped repackages fundamental components of Spotify’s Wrapped—a focus on aesthetics, PowerPoint-like presentation of information, and quantification of personal experiences—but does so in the context of interpersonal relationships as a dating year-in-review video on TikTok. This article applies a content analysis and critical thematic analysis to 54 TikTok videos with the hashtag DatingWrapped as a way to understand how sensemaking about sexual and romantic relationships occurs when individuals create content centered around self-disclosures of intimate experiences. Ultimately, we argue that trends such as Dating Wrapped provide opportunities for personal expression among emerging adults who use TikTok, the efficacy of which is enhanced by attention to data visualization within its presentation format. Second, TikTok trends centered around interpersonal relationships may influence the formation of sexual and romantic identities through processes of mediated learning about relationships.
{"title":"Mediated Sexual and Romantic Learning on TikTok: The Dating Wrapped Trend","authors":"Emily A. Mendelson, Jacob Kenton Smith","doi":"10.1177/20563051241279255","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241279255","url":null,"abstract":"The Dating Wrapped trend on TikTok takes inspiration from Spotify’s annual Wrapped event where Spotify users are presented with their year-end listening statistics. Dating Wrapped repackages fundamental components of Spotify’s Wrapped—a focus on aesthetics, PowerPoint-like presentation of information, and quantification of personal experiences—but does so in the context of interpersonal relationships as a dating year-in-review video on TikTok. This article applies a content analysis and critical thematic analysis to 54 TikTok videos with the hashtag DatingWrapped as a way to understand how sensemaking about sexual and romantic relationships occurs when individuals create content centered around self-disclosures of intimate experiences. Ultimately, we argue that trends such as Dating Wrapped provide opportunities for personal expression among emerging adults who use TikTok, the efficacy of which is enhanced by attention to data visualization within its presentation format. Second, TikTok trends centered around interpersonal relationships may influence the formation of sexual and romantic identities through processes of mediated learning about relationships.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142236834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-14DOI: 10.1177/20563051241277603
Elien Beelen, Kathrin Karsay
Mental health content on social media usually highlights positive emotions, especially hope. This article presents an experimental study on the effects of hopeful social media posts on Instagram. Drawing on appraisal theory and the phenomenon of spillover effects, we developed a 2 × 2 between-subjects post-test experiment, where we manipulated the message type (i.e., hope message vs. control condition) and the level of endorsement (i.e., high vs. low number of likes) of Instagram posts. Following exposure to our media stimuli, we studied the effects on subsequent levels of hope, life satisfaction, mental health stigma, willingness to disclose about mental health, and willingness to provide support on social media among a sample of n = 479 young adults ( Mage = 20.97 years, SD = 2.10). Our pre-registered analysis revealed no significant main or interaction effects in the predicted direction. We discuss the findings in the context of health communication, reflect the study’s limitations, and provide suggestions for future research.
{"title":"“The Future Is Bright! Is It?”: Investigating Effects of Hopeful Mental Health Content and Endorsement Cues on Social Media","authors":"Elien Beelen, Kathrin Karsay","doi":"10.1177/20563051241277603","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241277603","url":null,"abstract":"Mental health content on social media usually highlights positive emotions, especially hope. This article presents an experimental study on the effects of hopeful social media posts on Instagram. Drawing on appraisal theory and the phenomenon of spillover effects, we developed a 2 × 2 between-subjects post-test experiment, where we manipulated the message type (i.e., hope message vs. control condition) and the level of endorsement (i.e., high vs. low number of likes) of Instagram posts. Following exposure to our media stimuli, we studied the effects on subsequent levels of hope, life satisfaction, mental health stigma, willingness to disclose about mental health, and willingness to provide support on social media among a sample of n = 479 young adults ( M<jats:sub>age</jats:sub> = 20.97 years, SD = 2.10). Our pre-registered analysis revealed no significant main or interaction effects in the predicted direction. We discuss the findings in the context of health communication, reflect the study’s limitations, and provide suggestions for future research.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"62 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142233408","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-14DOI: 10.1177/20563051241269305
Duygu Karataş, Mine Gencel Bek
This study examines the critical role of Twitter (X) in crisis communication during the earthquake that struck Türkiye on 6 February 2023, focusing on how two prominent influencers, Haluk Levent and Oğuzhan Uğur, effectively utilized the platform in response to the disaster. Analysis of highly retweeted posts and engagement rates for tweets collected using related keywords—“ahbap,” “babalatv,” “haluklevent,” and “oguzhanugur”—reveals how Twitter served not only for functions such as sharing locations for rescue operations, information dissemination, organization, and fundraising but also for defense against attacks and criticism of the government. Furthermore, Twitter emerged as a digital battleground where power struggles unfolded between the state and activist influencers. This study addresses this oversight by examining how Twitter functions not merely as a tool for communication and aid coordination but also as an arena of political contestation, filling a critical gap in understanding the role of social media. It underscores the critical need to consider the underlying political dynamics that social media interactions bring to the forefront during emergencies.
{"title":"Digital Battlegrounds: The Interplay of Social Media, State Power, and Influencers in Türkiye’s Earthquake Response","authors":"Duygu Karataş, Mine Gencel Bek","doi":"10.1177/20563051241269305","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241269305","url":null,"abstract":"This study examines the critical role of Twitter (X) in crisis communication during the earthquake that struck Türkiye on 6 February 2023, focusing on how two prominent influencers, Haluk Levent and Oğuzhan Uğur, effectively utilized the platform in response to the disaster. Analysis of highly retweeted posts and engagement rates for tweets collected using related keywords—“ahbap,” “babalatv,” “haluklevent,” and “oguzhanugur”—reveals how Twitter served not only for functions such as sharing locations for rescue operations, information dissemination, organization, and fundraising but also for defense against attacks and criticism of the government. Furthermore, Twitter emerged as a digital battleground where power struggles unfolded between the state and activist influencers. This study addresses this oversight by examining how Twitter functions not merely as a tool for communication and aid coordination but also as an arena of political contestation, filling a critical gap in understanding the role of social media. It underscores the critical need to consider the underlying political dynamics that social media interactions bring to the forefront during emergencies.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"8 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142233380","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-14DOI: 10.1177/20563051241277606
Rui Wang, Yini Zhang, Jiyoun Suk, Sara Holland Levin
Centering on social media’s public- and profit-oriented nature, this study theorizes how social media users are empowered and constrained when participating in platform governance through user-initiated expressions on platforms. The empirical analysis focuses on user responses before and after Elon Musk’s official acquisition of Twitter, utilizing cluster analysis and topic modeling to examine the volume and content of related discourses among different Twitter user groups. Our results point to user constraint in platform governance. Although a diverse set of users, such as partisans, bots, and cryptocurrency enthusiasts, spoke up, they had diverging and sometimes conflicting objectives; and partisans dominated the conversations. There was an upsurge in user volume and activity level post-acquisition among liberal users, whose critical voices on platform governance might have bolstered platform business. Potential bots also increased in volume and amplified political topics. Our findings shed light on the challenges of user-driven platform governance, underscoring the complex interplay between platform users, economy, and governance.
{"title":"Empowered or Constrained in Platform Governance? An Analysis of Twitter Users’ Responses to Elon Musk’s Takeover","authors":"Rui Wang, Yini Zhang, Jiyoun Suk, Sara Holland Levin","doi":"10.1177/20563051241277606","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241277606","url":null,"abstract":"Centering on social media’s public- and profit-oriented nature, this study theorizes how social media users are empowered and constrained when participating in platform governance through user-initiated expressions on platforms. The empirical analysis focuses on user responses before and after Elon Musk’s official acquisition of Twitter, utilizing cluster analysis and topic modeling to examine the volume and content of related discourses among different Twitter user groups. Our results point to user constraint in platform governance. Although a diverse set of users, such as partisans, bots, and cryptocurrency enthusiasts, spoke up, they had diverging and sometimes conflicting objectives; and partisans dominated the conversations. There was an upsurge in user volume and activity level post-acquisition among liberal users, whose critical voices on platform governance might have bolstered platform business. Potential bots also increased in volume and amplified political topics. Our findings shed light on the challenges of user-driven platform governance, underscoring the complex interplay between platform users, economy, and governance.","PeriodicalId":47920,"journal":{"name":"Social Media + Society","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2024-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142233378","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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