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Fang G, Hong Z, Chen G, Wang J. Analyzing the diffusion of feminist discourses on Chinese social media: A case study of the 2022 Tangshan restaurant attack. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0308870. [PMID: 39178287 PMCID: PMC11343469 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0308870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 07/29/2024] [Indexed: 08/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Network platforms have ushered in a novel propagation model for feminist discourses. The emergence of oriental feminism in society has led to gender-based public opinions surrounding public events becoming a trending topic on Chinese social media. This study uses the 2022 Tangshan restaurant attack as a case study, an incident that sparked widespread discussions across China in 2022. The research gathered 366,602 network communication nodes within a week and examined the communication networks of three types of content nodes (information, opinion, and appeasement) using the complex network modeling method. The findings revealed that all three types of information communication networks exhibit an apparent scale-free characteristic, and the "key minority" of nodes significantly affects information communication. Information-type and appeasement-type Weibo display notable similarities in the quantity and degree distribution of nodes within the communication networks and in the information decay rate. Moreover, authoritative information issuers have become the primary catalyst for information propagation. Conversely, opinion-type Weibo has the widest communication network diameter and features a high degree of participation, multilevel propagation, and a slow decay rate. This indicates that the interaction between opinion leaders and netizens has enhanced the depth and breadth of information diffusion for opinion-type Weibo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gege Fang
- School of Digital Media and Design Arts, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing, China
| | - Zitong Hong
- School of Culture and Communication, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Guanting Chen
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Jingwen Wang
- School of Television, Communication University of China, Beijing, China
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Liu Y, Yin Z, Ni C, Yan C, Wan Z, Malin B. Examining Rural and Urban Sentiment Difference in COVID-19-Related Topics on Twitter: Word Embedding-Based Retrospective Study. J Med Internet Res 2023; 25:e42985. [PMID: 36790847 PMCID: PMC9937112 DOI: 10.2196/42985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Revised: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND By the end of 2022, more than 100 million people were infected with COVID-19 in the United States, and the cumulative death rate in rural areas (383.5/100,000) was much higher than in urban areas (280.1/100,000). As the pandemic spread, people used social media platforms to express their opinions and concerns about COVID-19-related topics. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to (1) identify the primary COVID-19-related topics in the contiguous United States communicated over Twitter and (2) compare the sentiments urban and rural users expressed about these topics. METHODS We collected tweets containing geolocation data from May 2020 to January 2022 in the contiguous United States. We relied on the tweets' geolocations to determine if their authors were in an urban or rural setting. We trained multiple word2vec models with several corpora of tweets based on geospatial and timing information. Using a word2vec model built on all tweets, we identified hashtags relevant to COVID-19 and performed hashtag clustering to obtain related topics. We then ran an inference analysis for urban and rural sentiments with respect to the topics based on the similarity between topic hashtags and opinion adjectives in the corresponding urban and rural word2vec models. Finally, we analyzed the temporal trend in sentiments using monthly word2vec models. RESULTS We created a corpus of 407 million tweets, 350 million (86%) of which were posted by users in urban areas, while 18 million (4.4%) were posted by users in rural areas. There were 2666 hashtags related to COVID-19, which clustered into 20 topics. Rural users expressed stronger negative sentiments than urban users about COVID-19 prevention strategies and vaccination (P<.001). Moreover, there was a clear political divide in the perception of politicians by urban and rural users; these users communicated stronger negative sentiments about Republican and Democratic politicians, respectively (P<.001). Regarding misinformation and conspiracy theories, urban users exhibited stronger negative sentiments about the "covidiots" and "China virus" topics, while rural users exhibited stronger negative sentiments about the "Dr. Fauci" and "plandemic" topics. Finally, we observed that urban users' sentiments about the economy appeared to transition from negative to positive in late 2021, which was in line with the US economic recovery. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates there is a statistically significant difference in the sentiments of urban and rural Twitter users regarding a wide range of COVID-19-related topics. This suggests that social media can be relied upon to monitor public sentiment during pandemics in disparate types of regions. This may assist in the geographically targeted deployment of epidemic prevention and management efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongtai Liu
- Department of Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Zhijun Yin
- Department of Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Congning Ni
- Department of Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Chao Yan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Zhiyu Wan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Bradley Malin
- Department of Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
- Department of Biostatistics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
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Meyer M, Vergnaud F. The Gene-Edited Babies Controversy: Reactions in the Scientific Community, Social Media, and the Press. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2023; 1429:191-204. [PMID: 37486523 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-33325-5_11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
This chapter analyzes how the gene-edited babies controversy sparked by He Jiankiu has unfolded in three spheres: the scientific community, the press, and social media. Across these spheres, there is a multilayered debate: scientific and technical aspects are discussed, as much as legal frameworks, ethics, responsibilities, politics, and social issues. But beyond these similarities, there are three notable differences. The first concerns (geo)politics. At the 2018 international summit on human gene editing, we observe efforts of self-regulation and demarcation to protect the moral and epistemic authority of the scientific community and to critique - and eventually "excommunicate" - He Jiankui. While the 2018 summit drew a clear line between "good science" and "bad science," in the press, the dichotomy is rather expressed in terms of "good countries" versus "bad countries" regarding their ethics and regulation (a dichotomy much less visible in social media). The second difference concerns emotions and affect. Despite the scientific community's strong condemnation of He Jiankui, it nevertheless expressed its criticisms in an unemotional and factual way. In the press and social media, however, various emotions are visible - fear, anger, pride, hope, rejoicing, disgust, and shame - and the discussion is more dramatic. Third, the use of positive terms is notable: while virtually absent in the scientific sphere and the press, there are positive assessments in social media.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan Meyer
- Centre for the Sociology of Innovation, Mines Paris (Paris Sciences & Lettres, CNRS), Paris, France.
| | - Frédéric Vergnaud
- Centre for the Sociology of Innovation, Mines Paris (Paris Sciences & Lettres, CNRS), Paris, France
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Kang Y, Deng H, Pray C, Hu R. Managers’ attitudes toward gene-editing technology and companies’ R&D investment in gene-editing: the case of Chinese seed companies. GM CROPS & FOOD 2022; 13:309-326. [DOI: 10.1080/21645698.2022.2140567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yuwei Kang
- School of Management and Economics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Haiyan Deng
- School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Carl Pray
- School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, USA
| | - Ruifa Hu
- School of Management and Economics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
- Yangtze River Delta Research Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, Jiaxing, China
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Li N, Li RYM, Yao Q, Song L, Deeprasert J. Housing safety and health academic and public opinion mining from 1945 to 2021: PRISMA, cluster analysis, and natural language processing approaches. Front Public Health 2022; 10:902576. [PMID: 36117599 PMCID: PMC9472747 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.902576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Housing safety and health problems threaten owners' and occupiers' safety and health. Nevertheless, there is no systematic review on this topic to the best of our knowledge. This study compared the academic and public opinions on housing safety and health and reviewed 982 research articles and 3,173 author works on housing safety and health published in the Web of Science Core Collection. PRISMA was used to filter the data, and natural language processing (NLP) was used to analyze emotions of the abstracts. Only 16 housing safety and health articles existed worldwide before 1998 but increased afterward. U.S. scholars published most research articles (30.76%). All top 10 most productive countries were developed countries, except China, which ranked second (16.01%). Only 25.9% of institutions have inter-institutional cooperation, and collaborators from the same institution produce most work. This study found that most abstracts were positive (n = 521), but abstracts with negative emotions attracted more citations. Despite many industries moving toward AI, housing safety and health research are exceptions as per articles published and Tweets. On the other hand, this study reviewed 8,257 Tweets to compare the focus of the public to academia. There were substantially more housing/residential safety (n = 8198) Tweets than housing health Tweets (n = 59), which is the opposite of academic research. Most Tweets about housing/residential safety were from the United Kingdom or Canada, while housing health hazards were from India. The main concern about housing safety per Twitter includes finance, people, and threats to housing safety. By contrast, people mainly concerned about costs of housing health issues, COVID, and air quality. In addition, most housing safety Tweets were neutral but positive dominated residential safety and health Tweets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na Li
- Rattanakosin International College of Creative Entrepreneurship, Rajamangala University of Technology Rattanakosin, Bangkok, Thailand
- College of Computer Science and Information Engineering, Qilu Institute of Technology, Jinan, China
| | - Rita Yi Man Li
- Sustainable Real Estate Research Center, Department of Economics and Finance, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Qi Yao
- School of Literature and Journalism, Chongqing Technology and Business University, Chongqing, China
| | - Lingxi Song
- Chakrabongse Bhuvanarth International Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Rajamangala University of Technology Tawan-Ok, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Jirawan Deeprasert
- Rattanakosin International College of Creative Entrepreneurship, Rajamangala University of Technology Rattanakosin, Bangkok, Thailand
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Liu Y, Yin Z, Wan Z, Yan C, Xia W, Ni C, Clayton EW, Vorobeychik Y, Kantarcioglu M, Malin BA. Implicit Incentives Among Reddit Users to Prioritize Attention Over Privacy and Reveal Their Faces When Discussing Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Test Results: Topic and Attention Analysis. JMIR INFODEMIOLOGY 2022; 2:e35702. [PMID: 37113452 PMCID: PMC9987181 DOI: 10.2196/35702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Revised: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
Background As direct-to-consumer genetic testing services have grown in popularity, the public has increasingly relied upon online forums to discuss and share their test results. Initially, users did so anonymously, but more recently, they have included face images when discussing their results. Various studies have shown that sharing images on social media tends to elicit more replies. However, users who do this forgo their privacy. When these images truthfully represent a user, they have the potential to disclose that user's identity. Objective This study investigates the face image sharing behavior of direct-to-consumer genetic testing users in an online environment to determine if there exists an association between face image sharing and the attention received from other users. Methods This study focused on r/23andme, a subreddit dedicated to discussing direct-to-consumer genetic testing results and their implications. We applied natural language processing to infer the themes associated with posts that included a face image. We applied a regression analysis to characterize the association between the attention that a post received, in terms of the number of comments, the karma score (defined as the number of upvotes minus the number of downvotes), and whether the post contained a face image. Results We collected over 15,000 posts from the r/23andme subreddit, published between 2012 and 2020. Face image posting began in late 2019 and grew rapidly, with over 800 individuals revealing their faces by early 2020. The topics in posts including a face were primarily about sharing, discussing ancestry composition, or sharing family reunion photos with relatives discovered via direct-to-consumer genetic testing. On average, posts including a face image received 60% (5/8) more comments and had karma scores 2.4 times higher than other posts. Conclusions Direct-to-consumer genetic testing consumers in the r/23andme subreddit are increasingly posting face images and testing reports on social platforms. The association between face image posting and a greater level of attention suggests that people are forgoing their privacy in exchange for attention from others. To mitigate this risk, platform organizers and moderators could inform users about the risk of posting face images in a direct, explicit manner to make it clear that their privacy may be compromised if personal images are shared.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongtai Liu
- Department of Computer Science Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN United States
| | - Zhijun Yin
- Department of Computer Science Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN United States
- Department of Biomedical Informatics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
| | - Zhiyu Wan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
| | - Chao Yan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
| | - Weiyi Xia
- Department of Biomedical Informatics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
| | - Congning Ni
- Department of Computer Science Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN United States
| | - Ellen Wright Clayton
- School of Law, Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN United States
- Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
- Department of Health Policy Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
| | - Yevgeniy Vorobeychik
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, MO United States
| | - Murat Kantarcioglu
- Department of Computer Science, University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX United States
| | - Bradley A Malin
- Department of Computer Science Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN United States
- Department of Biomedical Informatics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
- Department of Biostatistics Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN United States
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