A Multi-platform Approach to Monitoring Negative Dominance for COVID-19 Vaccine-Related Information Online

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to test the appearance of negative dominance in COVID-19 vaccine-related information and activity online. We hypothesized that if negative dominance appeared, it would be a reflection of peaks in adverse events related to the vaccine, that negative content would attract more engagement on social media than other vaccine-related posts, and posts referencing adverse events related to COVID-19 vaccination would have a higher average toxicity score. Methods We collected data using Google Trends for search behavior, CrowdTangle for social media data, and Media Cloud for media stories, and compared them against the dates of key adverse events related to COVID-19. We used Communalytic to analyze the toxicity of social media posts by platform and topic. Results While our first hypothesis was partially supported, with peaks in search behavior for image and YouTube videos driven by adverse events, we did not find negative dominance in other types of searches or patterns of attention by news media or on social media. Conclusion We did not find evidence in our data to prove the negative dominance of adverse events related to COVID-19 vaccination on social media. Future studies should corroborate these findings and, if consistent, focus on explaining why this may be the case.

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Underage JUUL Use Patterns: Content Analysis of Reddit Messages

Journal of Medical Internet Research ◽

10.2196/13038 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 21 (9) ◽

pp. e13038 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Yongcheng Zhan ◽

Zhu Zhang ◽

Janet M Okamoto ◽

Daniel D Zeng ◽

Scott J Leischow

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Social Media ◽

News Media ◽

Age Distribution ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Related Data ◽

Use Patterns ◽

Cigarette Brand ◽

Media Data ◽

Significant Health

Background The popularity of JUUL (an e-cigarette brand) among youth has recently been reported in news media and academic papers, which has raised great public health concerns. Little research has been conducted on the age distribution, geographic distribution, approaches to buying JUUL, and flavor preferences pertaining to underage JUUL users. Objective The aim of this study was to analyze social media data related to demographics, methods of access, product characteristics, and use patterns of underage JUUL use. Methods We collected publicly available JUUL-related data from Reddit. We extracted and summarized the age, location, and flavor preference of subreddit UnderageJuul users. We also compared common and unique users between subreddit UnderageJuul and subreddit JUUL. The methods of purchasing JUULs were analyzed by manually examining the content of the Reddit threads. Results A total of 716 threads and 2935 comments were collected from the subreddit UnderageJuul before it was shut down. Most threads did not mention a specific age, but ages ranged from 13 years to greater than 21 years in those that did. Mango, mint, and cucumber were the most popular among the 7 flavors listed on JUUL’s official website, and 336 subreddit UnderageJuul threads mentioned 7 discreet approaches to circumvent relevant legal regulations to get JUUL products, the most common of which was purchasing JUUL from other Reddit users (n=181). Almost half of the UnderageJuul users (389/844, 46.1%) also participated in discussions on the main JUUL subreddit and sought information across multiple Reddit forums. Most (64/74, 86%) posters were from large metropolitan areas. Conclusions The subreddit UnderageJuul functioned as a forum to explore methods of obtaining JUUL and to discuss and recommend specific flavors before it was shut down. About half of those using UnderageJuul also used the more general JUUL subreddit, so a forum still exists where youths can attempt to share information on how to obtain JUUL and other products. Exploration of such social media data in real time for rapid public health surveillance could provide early warning for significant health risks before they become major public health threats.

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Research on event perception based on geo-tagged social media data

Proceedings of the ICA ◽

10.5194/ica-proc-2-157-2019 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2 ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ruoxin Zhu ◽

Chenyu Zuo ◽

Diao Lin

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Event Study ◽

Information Dissemination ◽

Survey Methods ◽

Technological Advancement ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Related Information ◽

Event Model ◽

Open Question ◽

Media Data

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> Technological advancement makes information dissemination more convenient. When a notable event occurs, social media serves a popular platform for citizens to share event-related information. Therefore, in the information age, how to effectively observe the event and improve event management ability is an open question worthy of attention. Traditional social survey methods and various automatic sensors have been widely used to monitor the specific event. However, widely used social media service provides a unique approach for the event study with individuals as smart sensors. How to perceive an event through social media data has triggered a series of researches. Currently, we can find when, where what happened and induced impact based on geo-tagged social media data. However, event study based on social media is still in its infancy. This paper provides an overview of event study based on geo-tagged social media data. Firstly, we introduce the event model and the characteristics of social media data. Then, how to detect and trace event, how to analyze event impact and visually express obtained knowledge are discussed respectively. Subsequently, based on the existing researches, we propose further questions and conclude.</p>

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A copycat crime meme: Ghost riding the whip

Crime Media Culture An International Journal ◽

10.1177/1741659019865305 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (2) ◽

pp. 239-264

Author(s):

Ray Surette

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

News Media ◽

Media Communication ◽

Minority Community ◽

The Social ◽

Traffic Violations ◽

Crime Wave ◽

Youtube Videos ◽

Research Questions ◽

Media Data

A 2006 US copycat crime wave came into being, surged with thousands of crimes committed, and dissipated without substantial news media attention. The development of this early copycat crime meme is traceable to the nature of the crime, “ghost riding the whip,” and the social media and popular music communication channels associated with it. Ghost riding the whip involved traffic violations where drivers exit their cars and dance atop or alongside the moving driverless vehicles. Social media allowed the widespread diffusion of detailed instructions that spread this crime from a single minority community to the middle class within a 3-month period. The study of this copycat crime meme examined four types of data: Google Trends, rap songs, ProQuest news media data, and YouTube videos. The examination of the crime wave suggests how Gabriel Tarde’s 19th-century ideas operate in the contemporary social media era. However, unlike pre-social media-based crime waves that were launched via interpersonal and legacy media communication pathways, for ghost riding, rap songs, YouTube postings, and Google searches spurred its growth. Legacy media were found to be most important during the crime wave’s decline, but not during its diffusion. For this copycat crime meme, social media’s influence flowed in a unique upward and outward pattern and the results raise the research questions as to how social media have changed the dynamics of crime waves and how important legacy media will be in future crime waves.

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Applying sentiment analytics to examine social media crises: a case study of United Airline's crisis in 2017

Data Technologies and Applications ◽

10.1108/dta-09-2018-0087 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Xin Tian ◽

Wu He ◽

Feng-Kwei Wang

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Sentiment Analysis ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Content Type ◽

The Public ◽

Response Strategies ◽

Related Information ◽

Valence And Arousal ◽

Public Reaction ◽

Media Data

PurposeIn recent years, social media crises occurred more and more often, which negatively affect the reputations of individuals, businesses and communities. During each crisis, numerous users either participated in online discussion or widely spread crisis-related information to their friends and followers on social media. By applying sentiment analysis to study a social media crisis of airline carriers, the purpose of this research is to help companies take measure against social media crises.Design/methodology/approachThis study used sentiment analytics to examine a social media crisis related to airline carriers. The arousal, valence, negative, positive and eight emotional sentiments were applied to analyze social media data collected from Twitter.FindingsThis research study found that social media sentiment analysis is useful to monitor public reaction after a social media crisis arises. The sentiment results are able to reflect the development of social media crises quite well. Proper and timely response strategies to a crisis can mitigate the crisis through effective communication with the customers and the public.Originality/valueThis study used the Affective Norms of English Words (ANEW) dictionary to classify the words in social media data and assigned the words with two elements to measure the emotions: valence and arousal. The intensity of the sentiment determines the public reaction to a social media crisis. An opinion-oriented information system is proposed as a solution for resolving a social media crisis in the paper.

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Crisis social media data labeled for storm-related information and toponym usage

Data in Brief ◽

10.1016/j.dib.2020.105595 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 ◽

pp. 105595 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rob Grace

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Related Information ◽

Media Data

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Using Social Media Data to Understand Consumers' Information Needs and Emotions Regarding Cancer: Ontology-Based Data Analysis Study

Journal of Medical Internet Research ◽

10.2196/18767 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (12) ◽

pp. e18767

Author(s):

Jooyun Lee ◽

Hyeoun-Ae Park ◽

Seul Ki Park ◽

Tae-Min Song

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Health Information ◽

Language Processing ◽

Information Needs ◽

Semantic Analysis ◽

Care Process ◽

Cancer Type ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Related Information ◽

Media Data

Background Analysis of posts on social media is effective in investigating health information needs for disease management and identifying people’s emotional status related to disease. An ontology is needed for semantic analysis of social media data. Objective This study was performed to develop a cancer ontology with terminology containing consumer terms and to analyze social media data to identify health information needs and emotions related to cancer. Methods A cancer ontology was developed using social media data, collected with a crawler, from online communities and blogs between January 1, 2014 and June 30, 2017 in South Korea. The relative frequencies of posts containing ontology concepts were counted and compared by cancer type. Results The ontology had 9 superclasses, 213 class concepts, and 4061 synonyms. Ontology-driven natural language processing was performed on the text from 754,744 cancer-related posts. Colon, breast, stomach, cervical, lung, liver, pancreatic, and prostate cancer; brain tumors; and leukemia appeared most in these posts. At the superclass level, risk factor was the most frequent, followed by emotions, symptoms, treatments, and dealing with cancer. Conclusions Information needs and emotions differed according to cancer type. The observations of this study could be used to provide tailored information to consumers according to cancer type and care process. Attention should be paid to provision of cancer-related information to not only patients but also their families and the general public seeking information on cancer.

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Underage JUUL Use Patterns: Content Analysis of Reddit Messages (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.13038 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Yongcheng Zhan ◽

Zhu Zhang ◽

Janet M Okamoto ◽

Daniel D Zeng ◽

Scott J Leischow

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Social Media ◽

News Media ◽

Age Distribution ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Related Data ◽

Use Patterns ◽

Cigarette Brand ◽

Media Data ◽

Significant Health

BACKGROUND The popularity of JUUL (an e-cigarette brand) among youth has recently been reported in news media and academic papers, which has raised great public health concerns. Little research has been conducted on the age distribution, geographic distribution, approaches to buying JUUL, and flavor preferences pertaining to underage JUUL users. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to analyze social media data related to demographics, methods of access, product characteristics, and use patterns of underage JUUL use. METHODS We collected publicly available JUUL-related data from Reddit. We extracted and summarized the age, location, and flavor preference of subreddit UnderageJuul users. We also compared common and unique users between subreddit UnderageJuul and subreddit JUUL. The methods of purchasing JUULs were analyzed by manually examining the content of the Reddit threads. RESULTS A total of 716 threads and 2935 comments were collected from the subreddit UnderageJuul before it was shut down. Most threads did not mention a specific age, but ages ranged from 13 years to greater than 21 years in those that did. Mango, mint, and cucumber were the most popular among the 7 flavors listed on JUUL’s official website, and 336 subreddit UnderageJuul threads mentioned 7 discreet approaches to circumvent relevant legal regulations to get JUUL products, the most common of which was purchasing JUUL from other Reddit users (n=181). Almost half of the UnderageJuul users (389/844, 46.1%) also participated in discussions on the main JUUL subreddit and sought information across multiple Reddit forums. Most (64/74, 86%) posters were from large metropolitan areas. CONCLUSIONS The subreddit UnderageJuul functioned as a forum to explore methods of obtaining JUUL and to discuss and recommend specific flavors before it was shut down. About half of those using UnderageJuul also used the more general JUUL subreddit, so a forum still exists where youths can attempt to share information on how to obtain JUUL and other products. Exploration of such social media data in real time for rapid public health surveillance could provide early warning for significant health risks before they become major public health threats.

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Understanding Public Attitudes Toward Researchers Using Social Media for Detecting and Monitoring Adverse Events Data: Multi Methods Study

Journal of Medical Internet Research ◽

10.2196/jmir.7081 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 21 (8) ◽

pp. e7081 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Su Golder ◽

Arabella Scantlebury ◽

Helen Christmas

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Informed Consent ◽

Adverse Events ◽

Potential Benefit ◽

Influential Factor ◽

Social Media Analytics ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Social Media Platform ◽

Media Platform ◽

Media Data

Background Adverse events are underreported in research studies, particularly randomized controlled trials and pharmacovigilance studies. A method that researchers could use to identify more complete safety profiles for medications is to use social media analytics. However, patient’s perspectives on the ethical issues associated with using patient reports of adverse drug events on social media are unclear. Objective The objective of this study was to explore the ethics of using social media for detecting and monitoring adverse events for research purposes using a multi methods approach. Methods A multi methods design comprising qualitative semistructured interviews (n=24), a focus group (n=3), and 3 Web-based discussions (n=20) with members of the public was adopted. Findings from a recent systematic review on the use of social media for monitoring adverse events provided a theoretical framework to interpret the study’s findings. Results Views were ascertained regarding the potential benefits and harms of the research, privacy expectations, informed consent, and social media platform. Although the majority of participants were supportive of social media content being used for research on adverse events, a small number of participants strongly opposed the idea. The potential benefit of the research was cited as the most influential factor to whether participants would give their consent to their data being used for research. There were also some caveats to people’s support for the use of their social media data for research purposes: the type of social media platform and consideration of the vulnerability of the social media user. Informed consent was regarded as difficult to obtain and this divided the opinion on whether it should be sought. Conclusions Social media users were generally positive about their social media data being used for research purposes; particularly for research on adverse events. However, approval was dependent on the potential benefit of the research and that individuals are protected from harm. Further study is required to establish when consent is required for an individual’s social media data to be used.

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Measuring Organizational Legitimacy in Social Media: Assessing Citizens’ Judgments With Sentiment Analysis

Business & Society ◽

10.1177/0007650316683926 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 57 (1) ◽

pp. 60-97 ◽

Cited By ~ 53

Author(s):

Michael Etter ◽

Elanor Colleoni ◽

Laura Illia ◽

Katia Meggiorin ◽

Antonino D’Eugenio

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Sentiment Analysis ◽

News Media ◽

Quantitative Methods ◽

Organizational Legitimacy ◽

Social Media Data ◽

Stakeholder Groups ◽

Use Of Social Media ◽

The Individual ◽

Media Data

Conventional quantitative methods for the measurement of organizational legitimacy consider mainly three sources that make judgments about organizations visible: news media, accreditation bodies, and surveys. Over the last decade, however, social media have enabled ordinary citizens to bypass the gatekeeping function of these institutional evaluators and autonomously make individual judgments public. This inclusion of voices beyond functional and formally organized stakeholder groups potentially pluralizes the ongoing discussions about organizations. The individual judgments in blogs, tweets, and Facebook posts give indication about the broader fit between an organization’s perceived behavior and heterogeneous social norms and therefore constitute an indicator of organizational legitimacy that can be accessed and measured. We propose the use of social media data and sentiment analysis to study the affect-based responses to organizational actions by citizens. We critically discuss and compare the method with existing quantitative methods for legitimacy measurement and apply them to a recent case in the banking industry. We discuss the value of the method for studying the process of legitimacy construction as the expression and negotiation of normative judgments about organizations by various evaluators.

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