Social Media Information Environments and Their Implications for the Uses and Effects of News: The PINGS Framework

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Sophie Kümpel
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Central Source ◽  
Current Affairs ◽  
Social Media Platforms

Abstract Social media have become a central source for news and current affairs information. This article focuses on the overarching attributes that shape how people come in contact with news, engage with news, and are affected by news on social media. Although all social media are different and change constantly, news experiences on these platforms can consistently be characterized as personalized, incidental, non-exclusive, as well as granularized and social (PINGS). Accordingly, this article introduces the PINGS framework, which acts as a systematization of social media news experiences and can be used to map key opportunities and challenges of using news across various social media platforms. In addition to presenting the framework components, the article also discusses how researchers can investigate PINGS in empirical studies.

Is Snapchat Discover really a news platform? News snacking from social media and users’ knowledge of current affairs

2021 ◽  
Vol 00 (00) ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Jayeon Lee
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
The United States ◽  
Journalism Studies ◽  
Soft News ◽  
Current Affairs ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Negative Predictor

The role of the media in informing the public has long been a central topic in journalism studies. Given that social media platforms have become today’s major source of news, it is important to understand the impact of social media use on citizens’ knowledge of current affairs. While people get news from multiple platforms throughout the day, most research treats social media as a single entity or examines only one or two major platforms ignoring newer social media platforms. Drawing on news snacking framework, this study investigates how using some of today’s most popular social media platforms predicts users’ current affairs knowledge, with particular attention to Snapchat and its news section Discover. A survey conducted in the United States (N=417) demonstrated that each of the platforms is distinct: Twitter is a strongly positive predictor of knowledge, Facebook a marginally significant negative predictor, Reddit a significantly negative predictor and Instagram not a significant predictor. Overall Snapchat use has no significant association with users’ knowledge of current affairs, whereas Discover use has a negative relationship. Further analysis revealed that mere exposure to Snapchat is positively related to soft-news knowledge and attention to Discover is negatively related to hard-news knowledge.

Online Service Failure and Recovery Strategy

2016 ◽  
pp. 112-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yllka Azemi ◽  
Wilson Ozuem
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Online Marketing ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Service Failures ◽  
Service Failure And Recovery ◽  
Recovery Strategies ◽  
Social Media Platforms

The Internet environment has transformed the concepts of service failure and recovery strategies from a dyadic customer-provider focus into a multidimensional web quality scope. In traditional encounters, the research spectrum of service failure and recovery strategies is very much developed from a customer service approach, and the responsibility of recovery has been traditionally assumed to be something that is assigned to the marketer. Studies pay little or no attention to the multidimensional nature of service failures contingent to recovery strategies in the evolving social media. To date, empirical studies have focused on service failures and recovery strategies in online marketing environments, but pay limited attention to social media platforms. This paper aims to provide some insights on the need for a broader conceptualisation of service failure and recovery strategies, incorporating social media platforms for the development of effective marketing communications programme.

What about WhatsApp? A systematic review of WhatsApp and its role in civic and political engagement

First Monday ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie Pang ◽  
Yue Ting Woo
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Instant Messaging ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Communication Tool ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Social Media Platforms

The use of instant messaging platforms such as WhatsApp for civic and political purposes has been observed and reported to be growing faster than other social media platforms especially in recent years. Using empirical research on WhatsApp studies published from 2009 to 2019 as its corpus of data, this article systematically reviews them to provide more robust conclusions about WhatsApp and its relationship with political and/or civic engagement. This paper seeks to answer three central questions related to WhatsApp and engagement: 1) What are the motivations in using WhatsApp and how do they manifest in the use of WhatsApp as a communication tool? 2) What is the role of WhatsApp in civic and political engagement? 3) How do researchers study the use of WhatsApp in civic and political engagement? The review finds that across empirical studies, while WhatsApp is used by activists and organisational networks for mobilisation and coordinating actions, it is also used by users who draw on the affordances of the medium for informal and ‘de-politicised’ conversations. The findings contribute to the theorising of social media-mediated movements and activism and highlight methodological gaps of ongoing research on WhatsApp.

scholarly journals Can Developing Countries Handle the Mental Burden Due to the Lockdown Situation? Understanding the uncertainty and management of COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 72-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyotsna Pandey ◽  
Shohini Chakraborty ◽  
Imon Chakraborty ◽  
Pratik Ghosal ◽  
Neelam Singh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
News Media ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Healthcare Management ◽  
Effective Strategy ◽  
Developed Country ◽  
Domain Experts ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Life Threatening

Background: Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic can be referred to as a life-threatening war where every country is fighting with an invisible untold enemy. Realizing the disease severity and managing the prevention is crucial in current situations. Hence, it is time to follow the lockdown protocol until the situation improves worldwide. Method: We have searched all the possible validated resources such as WHO, governmental data-sharing portal, news media, blogs, and existing empirical studies. We identified the significant inputs from social media platforms provided by healthcare entrepreneurs, clinicians, and interrelated different domain experts. Here we qualitatively narrated an in-depth understanding of the phenomena and proposed a few steps to deal with the mental burden in developing country context. Result: There must be some effective strategy to reduce the mental burden and availability of the health consultancy services continuously to deal with such vulnerable situations. Telehealth is one such solution in a developed country where the healthcare system is well equipped to offer such services. Conclusions: Here, we have presented a few proposed steps that can be adapted/practiced dealing with a similar situation in developing and densely populated nation like India. This approach may help to deal with such emergencies and challenges for healthcare management in lockdown conditions.

Understanding continuance intention in traffic-related social media

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 539-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jengchung Victor Chen ◽  
Trang Nguyen ◽  
Marissa Oncheunjit
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Affective Commitment ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Social Capital Theory ◽  
Traffic Information ◽  
Continuance Intention ◽  
Information Systems Success ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Media Platforms

Purpose Recent technological advances have led to the growing popularity of traffic-related social media platforms which facilitate drivers to easily share, consume and exchange traffic information instead of the traditional ways using TV or radio. By integrating the information systems success model, social capital theory and dedication-based commitment mechanism, the purpose of this paper is to examine the varying degree of effectiveness in maintaining user’s continuance intention between two different social media platforms for traffic information. Design/methodology/approach The data were collected through online questionnaires from two platforms. One is a multi-channel traffic information community that has been specialized in traffic information for many years and has adopted several kinds of social media to engage with its audience. The other is a community-based traffic application created to help people exchange and contribute traffic information with real-time navigation. Findings The findings show that the effects of satisfaction and affective commitment on continuance intention are stronger in the community-based traffic application while their antecedents play different roles in shaping satisfaction and affective commitment due to the nature and characteristics of these two groups. Originality/value This study will be the first attempt to understand what matters to users and what can retain users to routinely use a specific traffic-related social media platform in their daily lives. This is also one of the first empirical studies that examine both transactional and relational points of view on users’ continuance intention.

scholarly journals Context Collapse: Social Psychology and New Media Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Psychology ◽  
Social Media ◽  
New Media ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Virtual Space ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Use Of Social Media

The communication between individuals has been changed and transformed by the use and popularization of mass media. The use of social media profoundly influences the mechanics of daily life by affecting the informal interactions of individuals, as well as institutional structures and professional routines. With the widespread and increasing use of social media platforms, the effects of these platforms on individuals and society have also formed a vital research ground. The concept of context collapse can be considered one of these effects and refers to the fact that different contexts, which are an essential determinant in face-to-face social relations, collapse in virtual space. Social media platforms are open to anyone and transfer communications in different contexts in physical places into one single space. That fact causes a context collapse. Social media, where different contexts collapse on each other, remove the reference points of individuals by making their self-presentation practices more complex. This study aims to discuss the theoretical foundations of the context collapse and present a multi-disciplinary perspective by addressing social psychology and new media disciplines. For this purpose, first, the importance of context in daily life practices was emphasized within the framework of these disciplines. Afterward, theoretical debates and empirical studies on context collapse have been reviewed. Finally, the relationships between the context collapse and gender roles and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed. Keywords: Context collapse, self, social cognition, social roles, gender, COVID-19

User-generated place brand identity: harnessing the power of content on social media platforms

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viriya Taecharungroj
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Place Branding ◽  
Brand Identity ◽  
Street Vendors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interesting Study ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Place Brand

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to use user-generated content (UGC) on social media platforms to infer the possible place brand identities of two famous metropolitan areas in Bangkok, Thailand, namely, Khaosan Road and Yaowarat (Bangkok’s Chinatown), both of which are famous for their street vendors and nightlife. These two places are interesting study sites because of recent identity conflicts among their stakeholders. The method developed in this research can help other places to better understand place brand identities and, as such, effectively plan for and manage those places.Design/methodology/approachThe author used content analysis to study 782 user-generated images on Flickr and 9,633 user-generated textual reviews of Khaosan Road and Yaowarat from TripAdvisor and Google Maps’ Local Guide. MAXQDA was used to code all the images. User-generated textual reviews were studied using Leximancer. The author also introduced a positivity of concept analysis to identify positive and negative components of place brand identity.FindingsThe author developed a place brand identity framework that includes three pillars, namely, place physics, place practices and place personality. Content analysis of the images generated 105 codes and a count of the frequency of the codes that represent place brand identity. Content analysis of textual reviews created the concepts in the three pillars and identified the positive and negative concepts for both places. The results of both image and text analyses showed that street food vending is one of the most salient components of place brand identity for both Khaosan Road and Yaowarat.Practical implicationsThe author suggested several place branding strategies for the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration such as turning Khaosan Road into a music scene for both visitors and locals, controlling excessive and aggressive commercialism, sponsoring the production of creative and authentic content, initiating a compelling online campaign that focusses on the items sold in Yaowarat, hosting a spotlight event such as a seafood festival and improving hygiene and walkability.Originality/valueBoth the advancement of digital technologies and the complexity of stakeholders create a need for empirical studies on place branding involving the participation of the widest possible range of stakeholders and studies on the influence of social media. This research is the first to use both image and text analyses to study place brand identity from UGC. The use of both analyses allows the two methods to complement one another while mitigating the weaknesses of each.

scholarly journals CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE AMBIVALENT POTENTIALS OF SOCIAL MEDIA USE IN COVID 19 PANDEMIC CAMPAIGNS

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ephraim Ejimnkeonye Ezebuenyi ◽  
Rosemary Obianuju Ekwunife ◽  
Felicia Chinyere Nweke
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
World Health Organisation ◽  
World Health ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
The World ◽  
The Face ◽  
Social Media Platforms

The fear created by the Coronavirus as seen in the world today and the manner social media is churning out all manner of information (misinformation, disinformation, memes, innuendos, half - truths, lies etc.) about its cure and prevention is creating a situation of uncertainty. The situation becomes more disturbing since none of the claims in social media platforms regarding the therapies and recipes (solutions) for the cure or prevention of COVID-19 has been approved or certified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) or the Centre for Disease Control (CDC). It seems, however, that only the prevalence of social media can suffice for the provision of adequate, regular and up - to - date information on the pandemic. This can also explain the reason for leveraging social media platforms to enhance fast and wide diffusion of knowledge about Coronavirus all over the world. By its nature, social media allows for information to be readily shared – a role it has seemingly played in the face of the COVID- 19 pandemic - and unlike traditional news outlets there is no filter, no fact - checking and often a lot of bias. It becomes imperative therefore to assess the ambivalent potentials which social media display in the face of COVID- 19 pandemic vis-à-vis the impacts they have on the consumers of the information. The paper adopted the library research approach in which relevant conceptual literatures and empirical studies were analysed with the aim to ascertain whether social media display ambivalence in the campaign against the spread of COVID-19. The paper found, among others that the ambivalent potentials of social media use in the campaign against COVID-19 was glaring. It recommends, among others that consumers of social media products in this period should listen more to and, or check for updates by governments and other authorised agencies such as WHO and CDC rather than relying on unwholesome information from social media platforms.

scholarly journals Social Media Addiction: The Rising Concepts and Issues

2021 ◽  
Vol volume 05 (issue 2) ◽  
pp. 100-110
Author(s):  
Adiba Akhtar ◽  
Amrat Haq
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Communication System ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Media Usage ◽  
Social Media Addiction ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Media Platforms

Social media has become immensely popular during the last one decade. The social media activities have occupied a sizable space in the daily lives of individuals. The virtual and vibrant social media platforms provide an easy access to its users which may lead to over use and consequently may result into social media addiction. This qualitative study is aimed at giving brief overview of some of the rising concepts and issues that have emerged in empirical studies during the last one decade regarding social media usage and its potential for addiction as it is important to establish consensual themes, concepts and issues so that researchers and clinical practitioners may combine their efforts to establish a communication system for a reliable assessments of social media addiction and behaviours associated with it.

Keeping the neighbourhood safe: How does social media moderation control what we see (and think)?

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 283-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa de Zwart
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Current Affairs ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Social Views ◽  
Political Opinions ◽  
Classification And Treatment

This article will address the issue of the growing reach, influence and potential accountability of Facebook and other social media platforms as a source of news and current affairs and shaper of social views, political opinions and norms. It will consider the recent release by Facebook of its guidelines on content moderation and its own assessment of how it is performing against its targets with respect to detection, classification and treatment of content. It will review a recent decision regarding President Trump’s Twitter feed and conclude that greater transparency regarding moderation practices is required.

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