Event Graph Neural Network for Opinion Target Classification of Microblog Comments

Opinion target classification of microblog comments is one of the most important tasks for public opinion analysis about an event. Due to the high cost of manual labeling, opinion target classification is generally considered as a weak-supervised task. This article attempts to address the opinion target classification of microblog comments through an event graph convolution network (EventGCN) in a weak-supervised manner. Specifically, we take microblog contents and comments as document nodes, and construct an event graph with three typical relationships of event microblogs, including the co-occurrence relationship of event keywords extracted from microblogs, the reply relationship of comments, and the document similarity. Finally, under the supervision of a small number of labels, both word features and comment features can be represented well to complete the classification. The experimental results on two event microblog datasets show that EventGCN can significantly improve the classification performance compared with other baseline models.

Repensando la tecnopolítica desde los procesos electorales 2012 y 2018 en México

This article proposes the technopolitical concept as a way to reflect on media changes both in expressions of demand as in processes of social domination and the shaping of public opinion. Longitudinal digital ethnography was carried out on the 2012 and 2018 electoral processes in Mexico. It is concluded that technopolitics is an assembly process where actors interact, with differentiated political objectives, who seek to transform a given historicity or aspire to preserve existing political structures through mobilizations, actions in social media, media content production and other technological appropriations.

The January 6 Insurrection and America's Standing Abroad: Natural Experimental Evidence from Five Unexpectedly Interrupted Public Opinion Surveys

American geopolitical power partly relies on foreign public support for its leadership. Pundits worry that this support is evaporating now that the United States—which claims to be the world’s beacon of democracy—has itself experienced democratic back- sliding. I provide the first natural experimental test of this hypothesis by exploiting that the January 6 insurrection of the US Capitol unexpectedly occurred while Gallup was conducting nationally-representative surveys in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Romania, and Vietnam. Because Gallup uses random digit dialing I can identify the effect by comparing US leadership approval among respondents that were interviewed just before, and just after, January 6, 2021. I find that the insurrection had no effect on US approval. If even a violent attempt to overturn a free and fair election does not affect US approval abroad it is unlikely that any other domestic anti-democratic event will.

Do Mothers and Fathers of Egyptian Stuttering Children View Stuttering Differently?

Purpose: Limited research has shown that knowing or interacting with a person who stutters facilitates more positive attitudes toward stuttering. This is true when the stuttering person is a close friend or a family member. The study sought to determine if Egyptian mothers held different stuttering attitudes than fathers as joint parents of children who stuttered. Method: Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes–Stuttering results of 25 mothers and 25 fathers of the same children who stuttered were compared. Also, children's severity scores were correlated with their parents' attitudes. Results: There were no significant differences between mothers' and fathers' stuttering attitudes; however, an unexpected trend for more positive attitudes of fathers was observed. Weak relationships between children's stuttering severity and their parents' attitudes existed, with slightly higher correlations for the fathers. Conclusion: Nonsignificant trends for slightly more positive attitudes for fathers than mothers should be explored in larger sample sizes in order to answer the question “Should information provided for parents of children who stutter be different or differently presented to mothers versus fathers?”

THE ACTIVITIES OF THE INTERNAL AFFAIRS DIRECTORATE IN EMERGENCIES AS A FACTOR IN THE FORMATION OF PUBLIC OPINION ABOUT THE POLICE

В статье рассматриваются основные принципы формирования и трансформации общественного мнения о полиции в гражданской среде, связанные с участием сотрудников правоохранительных органов в мероприятиях, направленных на предотвращение негативных последствий чрезвычайных ситуаций. Рассматриваются объективные риски, возникающие вследствие некорректной трактовки служебных действий сотрудников правоохранительных органов представителями гражданской сферы в условиях ограничения их возможностей с целью минимизации ущерба от чрезвычайной ситуации. Отмечается, что в условиях действия ограничительных мер на период объявления чрезвычайной ситуации усиливается негативное восприятие деятельности сотрудников органов внутренних дел. Оцениваются перспективы, связанные с улучшением социального восприятия полиции в результате освещения самоотверженности и высоких личных качеств сотрудников полиции, с риском для жизни и здоровья участвующих в борьбе с последствиями чрезвычайной ситуации и в спасении гражданского населения. Делается вывод о необходимости использования средств массовой информации как инструмента формирования общественного мнения в целях объективного отражения в общественном сознании россиян профессиональной деятельности работников правоохранительной системы. The paper examines the principles of the formation and transformation of public opinion about the police in the civilian environment, associated with the participation of law enforcement officers in measures aimed at preventing the negative consequences of emergencies. The publication considers the risks associated with the incorrect interpretation of the official actions of law enforcement officials by representatives of the civilian sphere in the context of limiting their capabilities in order to minimize damage from an emergency. The author evaluates the prospects related to improving the social perception of the police through highlighting the disregard of self and high personal qualities of police officers at risk to life and health of those involved in combating the consequences of an emergency and rescuing the civilian population. It is concluded that the media should be used as an instrument for the formation of public opinion in order to objectively reflect the professional activities of law enforcement officials in the public consciousness of Russians.